PETERSBURG, Va. -- Robert M. Walker did not waste time making his voice heard this election season.
Walker, 94, voted in the 2024 Election on Friday, the first day of early voting in Petersburg and across Virginia.
“God woke me up this morning and started me on my way,” he said, expressing gratitude for the opportunity to vote. "I just told my daughter on the way down here, 'I'm going to vote today. I'm 94. I might be dead when voting day comes."
Walker, who has witnessed significant changes in voting rights over his lifetime, wanted to encourage younger Virginians to value their voting rights.
“So many young people don’t know about it, and they don’t care to know,” he said, urging them to recognize the sacrifices made for the right to vote. “You don’t know what I went through to get where you are now. You’re on my shoulders.”
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Pat Hines, president of the Petersburg NAACP chapter, shared Walker’s commitment to mobilizing voters.
“When you think about the history of what happened to get the right to vote—not just for Black people but for women—it took us a long time,” Hines said.
She added that voting is not only a right but a duty that should be honored.
With a goal of increasing voter participation in Petersburg by 25 percent, Hines and the NAACP are working to inspire others like Walker.
“You can’t complain if you don’t have a part of the process,” Hines said. “If you want change, whether you support the incumbent or new candidates, you’ve got to get out here and vote.”
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