Good morning, it’s Election Day, and you surely already know you need to vote. You need to vote because it’s how democracy works; you need to vote because today will determine which party is in control of the Senate, which in turn will help determine whether one goddamned thing will get done at a federal level over the next two years. You need to vote because there are Personhood measures that would grant citizenship to fertilized eggs on the ballot in Colorado and North Dakota. You need to vote because who controls not just Congress, but state legislatures, is also at stake. And governors and state legislatures determine whether or not you—or others in your state—will be able to vote next time. You need to vote because of the minimum wage and because of paid family leave and equal pay protections and Supreme Court appointments.

If you are a progressive voter, if you are a progressive female voter, and especially if you are a progressive single female voter, you have probably been told that today is going to end badly for you. I’m an eternal optimist, but even I have to concede that these predictions are probably correct.

But I also have to tell you that it is absolutely insanely important that you go out and vote anyway. Not just because your great-grandmother wasn’t allowed to vote or because your dad wasn’t allowed to vote or because you’ll get to wear that “I voted!” sticker all day long. Though those are all very good reasons.

I’m telling you that it is wildly important that you vote—even if you live in a state where results are a foregone conclusion, as many of you do—for reasons that are slightly unrelated to electoral outcomes.

If you are a progressive single woman, your vote today will help determine the direction in which the Democratic and Republican parties move in coming years. This is no joke, no minor piece of polling trivia: This is pragmatic responsibility.