Some of us are always up late on election nights.

Right now we are in the heart of election season. Tuesday was primary day in Georgia and Alabama has their party primaries a week from Tuesday.

Primary day is a long one for poll workers, candidates and their supporters, as well as people in the news media. There are long waits while the results are tabulated. This has election officials, candidates and the news folks all burning the midnight oil.

And that’s okay. It’s all part of the process of being a democracy. We may never have an absolute democracy, but getting as close to it as we can should be something we strive for.

On a personal note, I was well pleased Drew Ferguson did so well in his race, bringing in close to 75 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s Republican primary. He looks to be well on his way to a second term in the U.S. Congress, representing Georgia’s Third District.

Make no mistake about it, having someone who is a true friend to your community is a good thing when it comes to high office.

Drew was doing what he was supposed to be doing on election night. He was in Washington, D.C. doing the work the voters of the Third District sent him to do. We contacted him by e-mail, and he was thoughtful enough to respond, albeit well past the midnight hour.

“I am humbled by the support I continue to receive from the Third District,” he told us. “I am pleased by the great things we have accomplished in Washington – such as tax cuts and regulatory reform – but also frustrated by the slow pace of change. Having the people who sent me here continue to lend me their support is very encouraging and important to me.”

Georgia made some history Tuesday by electing Stacey Abrams to a major party nomination in the governor’s race. She’s the first African-American woman to be a major party nominee in a governor’s race anywhere in the U.S. Realistically, she probably won’t win in November, but it does show that progress is being made in the way of race and gender equality.

If she did win, I think she’d made a good governor for Georgia. She was the first African-American valedictorian at Avondale High School near Atlanta, graduated magna cum laude from Spelman College and has since been the house minority leader in the Georgia General Assembly. Clearly, she has leadership skills.

I’m hoping for a good turnout in the June 5 Alabama primary election. There are some good people in the various county, district and state races. The best way for us to sustain democratic government is for us to participate in it. The worst thing you can do is to be indifferent and stay home on election day.