Let’s play a little game… what do these people have in common? Lamar Smith. Viola Liuzzo. Crispus Attucks. No guesses? Well, they’re just three of the people who died for our right to vote. The recently passed Veterans Day reminded us of the over 1.3 million solders who’ve died in various wars since 1775 for the opportunity for us to live as a free people. Lamar, Viola, and Crispus remind us that it’s not only our military who die for freedom; they were civilians who died specifically for the right to vote. The Revolutionary War created the country where we could take part in our own government, Women’s Suffrage and Black Suffrage came later, but having the right to vote is not the same as using it. The Roman Senator Cicero said, “Freedom is participation in power”, but today only a pathetically small number of people choose to participate. With the right to vote threatened by voter ID laws, with the effectiveness of voting diluted by bizarre gerrymanders, with the price in blood paid by others, a staggering proportion of people still choose not to the simplest, easiest thing to be free… to vote. They choose not to participate in power, they choose not to be free, they willingly choose to be slaves. And that makes us Furious…
What was the voter turnout in the last election?
Let’s take a look at the most recent election. (Full disclosure- Depending on which sources we checked, the population and voting percentage numbers below varied a bit. However, they were all in the general ballpark of each other and we think they’ll serve for illustrative purposes.)
Total population of the US– 316,000,000
Population over 18 years– 242,500,000
Population who are eligible to vote who have registered (70%)- 169,750,000
Population of registered voters who voted in the last election (36%)- 61,110,000
Population over 18 who didn’t vote- 181,390,000
Look at that! We can’t really fault the folks under 18 for not voting, but 75% of the people who could have voted didn’t! That is the lowest in any election cycle since WWII. Compare us to other countries and it’s even more embarrassing. Look at this graph of voting turnout in other wealthy countries. 
Belgium (Belgium!) has a 93% turnout rate, and Australia is around 80%. Both of these countries have compulsory voting; Belgium has a use-it-or-lose-it policy on voting, and Australia fines non-voters. However, Malta (not on the graph) has no compulsory voting and rates there approach 95%.
And even worse, if you assume an average candidate won with a margin of 51%, that means the 2014 election, the earth-shaking tsunami, the overwhelming will of the people expressed through the ballot box, was actually the will of 31,166,100 people. Just 10% of the overall population!
We in Oregon, political activists that we are, did much better than the national average with 69.5% voter turnout, but with almost one in three of us choosing to let other people run our lives it’s still nothing to write home about.
What increases voter turnout?
Maybe in one way it’s good that our voting rates are so low. After all, the people who vote are the people who care. Who would want millions of people casting uninformed ‘throwaway’ votes just to keep from being fined, or worse, casting an intentionally bad vote as an expression of frustration with being forced to the polls? But let’s make the assumption that higher voting rates are a good thing. How could we increase voter turnout? In each election the political parties go all-out to drive their voters to the polls, but they do everything they can to keep the other sides’ folks at home. What could we do to increase across the board voting rates? Here are some suggestions from two sources- Dr. Mark Franklin, author of “Voter Turnout and the Dynamics of Electoral Competition in Established Democracies Since 1945”, and FairVote.org, a non-profit, non-partisan group attempting to remove structural barriers to democracy…
- Proportional representation– Candidates are elected in proportion to the number of votes their supporting parties receive. Difficult to do under our winner-take-all system.
- National Popular Vote for President– The Electoral College means only certain states become battlegrounds and therefore, only certain states receive attention. Voting rates plunge in the ignored states. A popular vote would definitely increase participation in those states, but our pesky Constitution prohibits it.
- Instant Runoff Voting– This would work for single-seat offices like mayor and governor, and can be implemented without Constitutional changes.
- Universal Voter Registration– Rather than making registration a hurdle in itself, citizens could be registered to vote automatically and opt-out if they didn’t want to. This too could be implemented at a state level with no constitutional changes.
- Salience of an election– This is a strategy used by both parties to drive their bases. If there is an issue of interest to a particular group, (gay marriage or abortion, for example) then the base will come out to vote for it and possibly vote in other races as well.
- Relevance– People who don’t care about the issue or don’t think their vote counts don’t vote. They must reasonably believe that policy will be influenced by their participation. (An increasingly far-fetched assumption.)
- Easier Voting- Long lines, inconvenient polling places, complex registration, inability to take time off from work, and other factors reduce turnout. Things like increasing the number of polling places, making voting day a holiday, or universal registration (above) can increase participation without restructuring government.
While Americans might balk at mandatory voting and some of the other suggestions require major changes, the Democratic Party in New York is attempting to use peer pressure to get more people to vote. They’ve begun sending some fairly Orwellian notices to people about their voting history. Here’s an excerpt from the New York letters…
“Who you vote for is your secret, but whether or not you vote is public record. Many organizations monitor turnout in your neighborhood and are disappointed by the inconsistent voting of many of your neighbors.” It gives some information on how to vote, but concludes “We will be reviewing official voting records after the upcoming election to determine whether you joined your neighbors who voted in 2014. If you do not vote this year, we will be interested to hear why not.”
“Vote Shaming” letters like these are being sent by various groups, liberal and conservative, around the country. (One of our intrepid Your Car Matters reporters even saw one here in Oregon). Heavy-handed and grim, yes, but it seems to effectively raise voting rates. “Researchers from Yale University and the University of Northern Iowa reported that they had sent letters to voters with a variety of messages — voting is public record, your neighbors will know if you don’t vote, etc. — and what they found is that among people who received the mailers ‘substantially higher turnout was observed’. These findings demonstrate the profound importance of social pressure as an inducement to political participation,” the researchers wrote. In other words, nobody wants to be embarrassed in front of their neighbors.”
How can I help increase voter turnout?
Personally, you can talk to your family, friends, and co-workers about the importance of voting and what it means to you. If you’d like to get involved with a group working towards 100% turnout then there are several to refer you to…
Project Vote is a national nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) that works to empower, educate, and mobilize low-income, minority, youth, and other marginalized and under-represented voters. Since 1994 Project Vote has developed state-of-the-art voter registration and Get-Out-the-Vote programs, and has helped register more than 5.6 million Americans in low-income and minority communities. Project Vote has also achieved a nationwide presence through long-term relationships with service and advocacy partners, and takes a leadership role in nationwide election administration issues, working through research, legal services, and advocacy to ensure that our constituencies are not prevented from registering and voting.
U.S. Vote Foundation (US Vote) provides online tools to assist US citizens living anywhere in the world to register to vote and request their absentee ballot using their state’s specific voter forms. This includes US citizens living within the US, living abroad or serving in the military.
Our United States government, thankfully, at least gives a nod to increasing voting. Register To Vote on USA.gov has resources for voters, voter guides, registration information, and more.
The League of Women Voters is a citizens’ organization that has fought since 1920 to improve our government and engage all citizens in the decisions that impact their lives. We operate at national, state and local levels through more than 800 state and local Leagues, in all 50 states as well in DC, the Virgin Islands and Hong Kong. Formed from the movement that secured the right to vote for women, the centerpiece of the League’s efforts remain to expand participation and give a voice to all Americans. We do this at all three levels of government, engaging in both broad educational efforts as well as advocacy. Our issues are grounded in our respected history of making democracy work for all citizens.
In the United States, voter registration is the responsibility of the people, and only 70 percent of Americans who are eligible to vote have registered. RegistertoVote.org is a nonpartisan organization committed to reaching the remaining 30 percent. We simplify the voter registration process, making it faster and easier for you to get involved and become an active voice in our democracy. Register to vote today and start exercising your right to make a difference!
