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Importance of voting in democracy
Why is voting so important
Importance of voting in democracy
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Voting is among our most fundamental domestic responsibilities and important civic opportunities. Without free and open elections, American democracy would not exist. In addition to the requirement that individuals be at least 18 years old, voters in national elections must also be U.S. citizens. Reason why it is important to vote is that Voting is an essential right that has been given to citizens since it allows the society to become as close as it could to an ideal democracy, a nation governed by its people. “Some people think that voting is the most important right of all. In addition, the U.S. Constitution states that all citizens are equal regardless of their class, wealth, race, or gender. Voting allows the poor, the lower class and minorities to have a political decision-making power equal to that of the rich, the higher class and the majority” (Bureau U.S. Census).
There are many reasons that account for low voter turnout. First of all, it is obvious that there is a decline in public interest for elections. Most American citizens feel that their vote does not matter, and seeing as they lead very busy lives they are not inclined to make time to vote when they feel as if their vote does not count. American citizens have no
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It could mean the people are satisfied with the present state of the government. “It may also be better because the number of educated votes being cast is higher due to the fact that highly educated people tend to vote more frequently. There are many steps that could be taken to increase voter turnout in the United States” (Why Turn out so Low). One step is to place more significance on the voting process by declaring voting day a holiday. This would eliminate the hassle of American citizens having to make time to vote and hurrying back from work to their district to do so. If there was nothing to do on voting day but vote, more citizens would most likely do so
Thus, inactivity in voting threatens the very legitimacy of our government. In the recent November 7, 2013 midterm election, a few counties reported a mere 4% of eligible voters actually participated, in some cases, in voting for a policy referendum that would affect how millions of dollars would be spent in the coming years.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Voting is one of the citizens’ rights living in a country. In the past, not everyone can vote. Voting used to be for only white American men. However, our ancestors fought for that rights. Eventually, any American who are older than eighteen can vote, despite their race or gender. In addition, voter turnout is used to keep track of the voting. It is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election. Unfortunately, the voter turnout has been decreasing over time, and it means that there are less and fewer people who actually show up and vote. This essay will discuss the voter turnout in Harris County, Texas.
Austin Ranney does not dread that low voting is hurting American democracy. Arend Lijphart believes that democracy is meaningless without voting. The fact that to many people do not vote for Presidential or Congressional elections concerns him. With numbers like 49 and 55 percent of the eligible population voting on Presidential elections, Lijphart questions the actual democracy in America. Low voting turnouts is giving large groups more control over government ideals. Lijphart thinks the best way to solve this problem is to raise turnouts in a variety of ways. Things like weekend voting and easier ways of acquiring absentee ballots will increase the number of voters. Also, having multiple elect...
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
The Chartist movement (a working class political movement) in 1840 believed “People had no one else but themselves to blame for the actions of their politicians” (Nash). What Mr. Nash and the chartist movement believe couldn’t be more on the spot. This country has gotten to the point where people find it hard to walk down their street to the elementary school where the voting polls are, and take a few minutes to cast a vote. A vote that millions of people around the world wish they were able to have them selves. With all the political suffrage that goes on through the world and people forced to love a leader, these no-shows should be thankful to live in a democracy. A place where elections aren’t rigged and the people are truly heard. This is why the topic of voting turnout needs to be raised. Also it’s very annoying to hear people complaining about our President when they did not even vote. It’s a very bad habit to not vote, and it needs to change with the younger citizens of this country. Helping younger people see the importance of voting needs to start with technological and educational ideas while expanding all the way to social event ideas. Only then will America’s ability to find answers to voting turnout increase.
Among the many ways Americans can participate in politics, voting is considered one of the most common and important ways for Americans to get involved. The outcome of any election, especially at the national level, determines who will be making and enforcing the laws that all Americans must abide by. With this in mind one might assume that all Americans are active voters, but studies show the voter turnout is actually astonishingly low. With this unsettling trend it is important to know what statistics say about voter turnout as was as the four major factors that influence participation: Socioeconomic status, education, political environment, and state electoral laws, in order to help boost turnout in future elections.
A democracy is a type of government in which the people rule; it is adopted by many countries across the world (Kollman, 2012: 25). One way people influence the government is by actively participating in elections and nominating individuals whom they wish would serve the country. These people – government servants: mayors, senators, presidents, etc. - represent the people and their ideologies. Some countries honor the election system more than others and The United States of America is one of them. This is why voter turnout is important and has become an issue addressed by many political parties and their candidates with The United States having one of the lowest turnouts. There are many components that factor into this decline but the most important one is the time and more specifically the day elections take place (Shaw, 2014). I believe that in order to stress the importance of electing officials and encouraging citizens of the states to vote, Election day should be declared a national holiday and be moved from Tuesdays to Mondays (Kollman, 2012: 330).
As of the ratification of the 26th amendment in 1971, the voting age in the US is 18. As I turn 18 this coming summer I now have the chance to participate in elections local, state, and national wide. The history of youth voting has changed over time with that more 18-24 year olds are voting as time goes on. The question comes to mind about voting in that why would someone want to vote and if it’s just a waste of time. I believe that if people have the chance to vote, then they should which is why I am going to vote in elections to come in the future.
The U.S. is not known for high voter turnout. Consistently, the United States has fallen short in comparison to other “well-established democracies” (Fair Vote). United States has one of the lowest
America’s low voter turnout has been attributed to by the political parties’ failure to enliven the potential voters with the awareness and competitiveness in elections and the overall difficulty of the registration and voting process. The research portion of this project was predominantly provided from four books focused on voter turnout, whether it was perceived to be increasing or decreasing. The article used was found using one of the books and altogether the sources provided analytical and institutional perspectives on American voter turnout. I believe voter turnout, along with voter registration is steadily declining in America due to multiple factors, though the topics touched on above are largely impacting us today.
Democracy demands for its citizens to participate, which includes voting. With a majority of the nearly three hundred million adult citizens in the United States not even showing up to often at elections, from local to federal, the bureaucracy on Capitol Hill seems to retain the largest vote. The American system is a revolution of
Voter turnout in the United States has been decreasing over the years. Statistical data has shown that voter turnout has decreased by five percent if you look at the previous three elections. The United States government is run by three government branches and voting is a major part of the United States it’s what makes United States different. The people are given a choice on who they want to vote as their representative, their president even though our vote does count the person with the most electoral votes wins the race.
Now, people often make excuses to justify themselves for not voting. If it is not the fact that they do not want any of the candidates to win, it is another excuse. From my own observations, I have heard numerous adults claim that they can not vote because other obligations, like work, prevent them from doing this. The most common excuses are “I don’t have the time,” and “I don’t really care for politics.” Many of these people lack the motivation to get out and vote and fail to realize that voting will give people the power that they do not necessarily have.
If everyone is voting, then we know the results are a representation of the population as a whole, and not of the only the small number of people who showed up to work. This allows democracy to function as it was intended and to “Protect the integrity of our elections” (Liu). Also, compulsory voting helps to give more representation to the moderate party affiliations. As as William Galston of the Brookings Institution states that ,” it would temper the polarization of our politics” (Liu). Today, the United States has two strongly supported parties; the Democratic party and the Republican party.
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