Page 215 of the Textbook talks about how although the USA is technically a Democracy, voter turnout for presidential elections hovers around 50% in recent elections. This means that the president of the USA is sometimes elected by less than half the population - which is a poor measure of democracy, where the elected representatives are supposed to be "by the people" and not "by about half the people" :-) For instance, the 1996 election in which Bill Clinton was elected president saw a voter turnout of only 49%.
I believe that voter turnout in Australia is often higher than 90% because the country has a policy of compulsory voting - the voter who does not have a legitimate reason for not casting a ballot may be fined or imprisoned! That is a fine incentive to vote :-)
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When I was in Australia last year my spouse and I stayed at B&Bs as we traveled around so we had plenty of opportunities to talk about differences (and similarities) between U.S. and Australian politics. Yes, voter turnout there is quite high in part because it's compulsory but it's also normative behavior. The people we met there said it's just expected. Young people look forward to the day they can vote. In addition, voting day is on a Saturday, which makes it much easier for people to get to the polls. The Australians we met were appalled at the low voter turnout in the U.S. They couldn't believe that we'd be so uninterested in who would be in charge of the country.
It is interesting how policies vary from country to country. In Brazil, for instance, voting is a civil obligation which is taken seriously. Whoever turns 16 years old is allowed to vote, and as soon as one turns 18, it becomes mandatory to vote. When I was younger I did not enjoy “spending” part of my day going somewhere to vote. But with the pass of time I realized, although my vote might not change the world, it certainly contributes towards it.
As a permanent resident of the United States I can vote whenever there are presidential elections in Brazil. But I am not allowed to vote in the United States yet. I honestly would like to vote this year in the United States. I never saw so many young people involved with elections as this year. Apparently there are two choices: either voting for the continuation of Bush’s administration, or voting for change. Voting for change is an appealing incentive to me! : )
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