I have voted in every election that I have been eligible for (almost 30 years of voting now). I consider it an obligation as a citizen to express my preference

I have voted in every election that I have been eligible for (almost 30 years of voting now). I consider it an obligation as a citizen to express my preferences, though I'll admit that I often get frustrated with our elected governments. I try to make the vote my own thing, I have usually supported a minor party with limited opportunities for government but some electoral wins at the candidate level. Electoral campaigns are usually a circus that I have come to avoid, I think the important thing is to interact with people at an individual or small group level all the time not just during elections. And if voting seems like a waste (or even if it seems valuable), go do something else to make things better. Arlo Guthrie once pointed out that if we lived in a perfect world it would be impossible to improve things but in a world that sucks "you don’t have to do very much at all! There’s never been a time in the history of the world when you could do so little and have it mean so much to so many people!" And always be testing and adjusting your beliefs based on evidence and knowledge. You might find that people's beliefs are usually more complex than what you'll find on the news or on a political website.