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Responsibility of a voter
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The United States of America has given its people the right to vote for its leaders compare to other locations. Now voting is no new thing but a practice dating back to the ancient city-states of Greece. Just as the people of old, today's citizen must understand and comprehend that voting is accompanied with a personal responsibility. And that this responsibility also extends to a more complex social responsibility of the people.
When discussing if a citizen vote is a personal responsibility, we must first define what “personal responsibility” means in this sense. Let us break down the phrase “personal responsibility” into individual parts to get a better grasp of this phrase meaning. Let’s first defined “personal” as a sense of privacy and emotion of one's own duty to and beliefs. Now, “responsibility” can be defined as; to be held accountable or blamed by an action taken by an individual. After defining both words separately we can attempt to combine their meanings together as follow; “personal responsibility” could be held accountable for
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We must argue that any individual who votes must also understand how that vote will affect their community. One cannot just vote without reason if we could then this democracy should crumble from the negative impacts of its citizens. Yet we have not reached this point due impart to “social responsibility”. Every citizen understands that what they choose impacts those around them, thus they must vote for the benefit of all the community. Especially for those whom cannot vote, this is “social responsibility”. But there a lot of people who can vote but still believed their vote means nothing. But a perfect example is the 2016 elections after the elections people were upset due to the outcome. But as we look at the data many of these people are those who did not vote, but if they would have then we would be a different
On the national civics assessment, “two-thirds of 12th graders scored below ‘proficient’…and only 9 percent could list two ways a democracy benefits from citizen participation” (O’Connor and Romer 4). The information provided clarifies just how little students know about democracy. Without education on the subject, they are unaware as to how their government contribution is beneficial and why it is needed in the first place. The students, because of their lack of understanding, therefore choose to not take part in their government and fail to carry out their duties as a citizen. The authors provide more research that shows “the better people understand our history and system of government, the more likely they are to vote and participate in the civic life” (O’Connor and Romer 8).
Personal responsibility is the idea that an individual chooses their own actions. Montag demonstrates this when he steals a book from a house he recently burnt for hosting illegal books. “His hand had done it all, his hand, with a brain of its own, with a conscience and a curiosity in each trembling finger, had turned thief” (35). Another quote is, “And you’ll take it in. And you’ll try to judge them and make your decision as to which way to jump, or fall. But I want it to be your decision not mine”
...adults compared to older adults were less likely to respond that voting was extremely important for good citizenship (133). He concludes that it is too late for the generation of young adults that do not feel voting is an important civic responsibility, however, that it is not too late to convince them that politics matter by showing them that they are giving their opportunity to make important decisions that may impact their lives to others who have different ideas. One may agree with Wattenberg’s idea that habits follow people throughout their lives instead of changing as they cycle in life. His personal accounts are an impactful way to illustrate the importance of building a sense of duty at a young age and carrying that responsibility throughout one’s life.
Americans and Britons had a stronger sense of civic duty and and civic competence, believed they could “do something’ about an unjust law, and that citizens should be active in one’s community. While Americans lagged behind Austria, the Netherlands, West Germany, and the United Kingdom in voter participation, they seemed to be much more involved in other areas such as campaigning, being active in the local community, and contacting government official. But in “Bowling Alone,” Robert Putnam states that not only has voter turnout declined, but so has citizen participation in politics and government. This is because they are more self-reliant now. People do not vote because they do not care. They believe the democratic values this nation was built upon do not exist
It is our civic right and duty to actively participate in governmental affairs. This recent election really highlighted the divide in opinion regarding the importance of governmental participation. “To many, our democratic system seems so broken that they have simply lost faith that their participation could really matter,” West writes in his essay entitled The Deep Democratic Tradition in America. Young people feel unimportant and irrelevant, which explains the lack in turnout from young voters ages 18-29. However, it wasn’t just young voters that didn’t turnout. Millions of eligible voters didn’t show up for the 2016 elections. A democracy without active participants is a democracy bound for
Regardless of the political environment, it is the responsibility of voters to take initiative in becoming politically involved. However, the current electoral system in the United States is not one that fosters voter participation, but instead often discourages voting altogether. This is evidenced through the lackluster voter turnout in the United States, which is amongst the lowest of any democratic nation. While it is convenient to blame this lack of democratic participation on a lazy and apathetic public, the root of the problem lies elsewhere. The current system of winner-take-all elections, strategic gerrymandering, incumbency advantage and governmental unresponsiveness to constituent desires is enough to deter even the most politically consci...
From its early period, the United States has obtained an indirect type of democracy, and has always had contentment that its citizens are allowed to vote for their representatives, especially the President. Nevertheless, the amount of citizens that actually vote in nationwide elections has decreased noticeably over the years. Voter participation and turnout has been declining in the United States throughout history. Voter turnout, the percentage of eligible individuals who actually vote (Ginsberg), to this day is lower than it was in the 1900’s. Since 1912, presidential elections have only had about 50 to 65 percent of Americans participate. This means that about half of United States citizens who are eligible and have the freedom to vote have failed to participate in presidential elections. At the end of the nineteenth century voter turnout started plummeting, reaching the 60 percent level by the election of 1912 (Teixeira, 1987). The declining rate of voter participation in the United States is due to voter registration and procedu...
Should we have the freedom to chose weather we vote or not? Currently the United States allows citizens not to vote, but some believe that this makes our politics undemocratic. Some think forcing people to vote is against the freedoms we have today. In the following essay, I will give the views of Arend Lijphart and Austin Ranney about these topics.
In a Democratic economy, people elect their representatives through the system of voting. The choice of electing a strong government is always there in people’s hands. As much as casting the vote to a righteous government is important, it’s equally or more important that it is done right. The decision of forming the ruling government is based on the vote count and there is a high risk of voter fraud to take place during elections. Casting vote on others behalf or rigging to increase the vote share of the favorable candidate leads to a complete failure of democracy. Presenting a valid ID at the time of voting will eliminate voter fraud to a great extent and helps to maintain credibility in the decision made.
...eople not voting! Americans are becoming less educated on the issues that they are facing as well as the candidates running at the time of office. However, according Longley (2011) ”Still, 93 percent of infrequent voters agreed that voting is an important part of being a good citizen and 81 percent of nonvoters agreed it is an important way to voice their opinions on issues that affect their families and communities” (pg. 1).
Since the establishment of our great country, Americans utilized the ballot box as a freedom of expression. Voting is a basic right that many of us take for granted, some even viewing it as a “God given right.” As citizens, we expect the right to vote. Many oblivious to the fact that voting is a privilege that can be revoked. The process, commonly referred to as disenfranchisement, is the principle reason for my summary. Today more than ever, one of America's post-election concerns is voter turnout. Usually, the numbers are bleak, especially during local elections. As a society, we cannot afford to turn our back on one of the pillars of a democracy. If elected officials are to represent segments of voters, then people from all lifestyles need to be able to participate in the process. As a Republic, our elected officials carry the message of their constituents, uniting many voices into one. This is not the case for some segments of society. Major findings show that over an estimated 5.2 million Americans have lost the right to vote. (Lance 2008) Many of these Americans are members of minority groups. The process that makes disenfranchisement possible has been in practice for centuries. The law states that once you have become a felon you lose your right to vote. This applies even after their release into society. Further aggravating the issue is society’s current tough stance on lawbreakers, which has converted what were once misdemeanors into felonies. The result has been record amounts of prison inmates across the United States, resulting in millions of Americans who hold no voice in their future. The argument made is that these men and women have been reduced to living in the shadows of society. On the other si...
During the year of 1870, on the 3rd day in the month of February, the 15th amendment was ratified. The 15th amendment prohibits the denial of the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Basically, giving all United States citizens the equal right to vote. Thousands of brave men and women have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend the United States constitution that holds our rights. Not to mention all the hard work from several people it took to pass congress. So why not make voting mandatory? Mandatory voting will benefit the United States citizens by allowing everyone to exercise their rights, therefore, entitling us to have a say in the electoral process, possibly making a change to improve our country.
Democracy is the ablity to have a voice in government , however not a direct voice.This indirect voice is best represented through the leaders that ones sees best fit.So how do americans get their voice across? The answer is simple , and that is through voting and political particapation.The right to vote was a long haul, in the 1800s only landowning white males where allowed to vote.Over time with the demand for change, blacks were allowed to vote and slowy but surely women were allow to vote.Currently in the United States of America in order vote you must be 18 years or older and a U.S citizen.This essay will explore the prilvage of voting, why voters tend to vote and why not and if voting can be considered rational.
Many people think of the 206 million eligible voters in the United States and think, “How could one vote possibly make a difference?” Or perhaps some find themselves too busy, while other non-voters are simply uninterested in politics. With a combination of all excuses, about 75 million people that were eligible to vote in the 2008 presidential election chose not to. That’s 75 million unheard voices! 75 million unrepresented individuals make up approximately 36% of all eligible voters. That number of people could easily change the outcome of an election. When put in perspective and fully understood, it’s realized just how important it is for every eligible voter to vote, and do so responsibly. The significance of voting is commonly misunderstood. Voting determines things from the president of the United States, to a small town mayor, to representatives, which all in turn determine everything from war, to taxes, to a child’s education. This country was politically formed into something previously unknown to the world, and with citizenship to this great country and democracy, comes great responsibility. It is a right as U.S. citizens to choose to vote or not; however, it is a duty and obligation to do so, for the sake of those who have fought, for friends and family, and for this country as a whole.
The action of voting is such important role in how our country is going to be developed, especially effects on the economy, foreign relationships, society, etc. People are becoming much involved in politics, which is extraordinary because it means that the people are understanding how important their vote is and how it brings change to the issues that truly bother them. Many citizens don’t vote because they are either lazy or too busy, they either have jobs, classes, families, or other responsibilities take care of, but voting is a responsibility that should be attended. Voting could be the thing to prevent awful political leader’s to be put in office who are not focusing on what’s truly important, which is the people, which means that