It's often said that all politics is local. While true, it could also be argued that our democracy is rooted in the individual.

Two recent examples drive home that participation certainly matters. On Monday, the U.S. Census Bureau released state-by-state population counts. Since our decennial tally determines which states get how many seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, new numbers were released for Congress as well. Texas gained two seats while Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina and Oregon each added one. California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West...