TOMORROW is election day, but citizens don't have to vote. No one will pound on their doors, drag them to a polling place and force them to mark a ballot.

Even though voting is a fundamental civil right, hard-won for women and minority groups, not all Americans appreciate their power to choose their leaders and the direction of their governments.

Even though some will get the day off or get time away from the job, more than a third of eligible voters in the country just won't bother.

It's their loss.

They don't get to pick a new president, the person who must shepherd the nation through the most difficult of times.

Hawaii residents who sit out the election will have no part in determining whether to have a Constitutional Convention, the memberships of the Board of Education and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, or their representatives in Congress.

Non-voters in Kauai, Oahu and Hawaii counties will also pass up the chance to select their mayors and to decide on changes to their charters.

After the votes, they will still be allowed the constitutional right to complain and speak out against the policies and actions of those they didn't elect, but their lack of participation diminishes their standing as citizens. Non-voters should not expect accountability if they do not take responsibility themselves.

The stakes are always high in elections, but this time, Americans who vote will participate in making history. As a result, a record number of voters are expected to head to the polls. Don't be one who didn't.