Voting should be a duty

Stephen Harper must have surprised everyone over the weekend when he told an audience “We always say in all these elections in a democratic ethos, voters are never supposed to give absolute trust to anybody. They’re supposed to constantly question and that is part of the process.”
A recent Angus Reid-Toronto Star poll has determined that Canadian voters have dashed hopes and remain unmoved by what they are witnessing among the political parties. Voters according to the poll are full of mistrust and cynicism. Voters today believe that politicians are less honest and over half of those taking part in the poll said none of the parties had satisfactory positions on issues that matter to voters.
When a leader tells an audience not to trust political parties, and polls confirm that voters are already not trusting politicians, one can expect fewer Canadians will vote.
In the last federal election, voters from the highest income neighborhoods had the highest voter turnout. Those from the least affluent neighborhoods, and who were less well educated in Canada had the lowest turnout. And when the total voter participation is examined, it is questionable whether Canada really has a democratic government. More voters declined to vote across the country than any party received in votes.
Perhaps the answer today is to follow the example of Australia. The next parliament should pass legislation to compel every Canadian to vote.
Today, political parties focus on their core electorate. Knowing that over 60% of 18-25 year olds don’t vote, the major parties do not speak to the issues of that group, nor do they speak to less well off Canadians. Those voices are not important.
Mandatory voting would compel the political parties to address the needs of those groups who today feel that there is not reason to cast a ballot and feel disconnected with the democratic process.
In 1924, compulsory voting was introduced in Australia following a national voter turnout that had dropped below 60%. In Belgium compulsory voting began in 1894. In both those countries voter turnout now exceeds 90%. The ballots show the names of the candidates running plus one more selection (None of the Candidates). The system counts dissatisfaction. And if the Angus Reid poll is accurate, we might see over 50% of Canadians tell the parties that they are dissatisfied with the political shenanigans that take place daily in Ottawa.
Compulsory voting is not coercion. It would make it a civic responsibility. It would be no more onerous than wearing a seat belt. It would in fact demonstrate to each Canadian that government believes that voting is important and that each vote has value. Over 70% of Australian voters support compulsory voting. There is a penalty for not voting and in 17 countries where no penalty is enforced compulsory voting is no more successful than we currently see in Canada.
Compulsory voting would change the way all the major parties treat the electorate. The last time in Canada a major change took place was when voting was extended to women. Following the passing of “An Act to confer the Electoral Franchise upon Women” on May 24, 1918, women were no longer disregarded by politicians. Liberal and Conservative politicians then began talking about women’s issues.
Through compulsory voting, any party failing to address and talk with the youth, or the under privileged, would suffer in the polls.
If we don’t increase our participation, we are continuing to make a mockery of our democratic process. Please exercise your vote on Monday. Help restore democracy to Canada.
–Jim Cumming,
Publisher