In 2010, nearly 16 million registered electors did not turn out to vote. Is compulsory voting the answer?
In 2010, nearly 16 million registered electors did not turn out to vote. Next month a similar figure probably won’t make it to the polls.
Against this backdrop, some have called for voting to be made compulsory. One of those is Labour MP David Winnick, who has suggested that voting be made a ‘civic duty’. Similarly, the IPPR think tank has recommended compulsory first time voting, which it says could ’empower’ young people.
On the other hand, isn’t compelling people to vote a sign of democratic failure? Don’t politicians simply need to offer people an inspiring message which they actually want to vote for?
Have your say by taking part in our weekly survey. The results will be published on the site early next week.
29 Responses to “VOTE: Should voting (or actively abstaining) be compulsory?”
damon
I was thinking about registering last night before the deadline, but then forgot.
No big deal, it would make no difference to anything.
No it shouldn’t be compulsory.
littleoddsandpieces
If voting is compulsory, then there would also have to be state funding of political parties who reach sufficient membership numbers to get equal media coverage by law as in Europe.
Right now Damon below is just another person, who is unaware of the 6th and 7th parties on the ballot sheet, that could have brought in over 250 guaranteed anti austerity MPs, that is a vital and powerful opposition to austerity cuts.
Right now we are in a dictatorship.
The Tories have already won.
Labour has already lost even if it gains a few more MPs than the Tories.
The 75 per cent poor vote is disenfranchised by the national press and TV news doing a complete media silence.
Nothing is said about the parties that are for the poor.
The poor being all from the bottom of the average wage down to zero, in work or not, poor pensioners
or those denied any state pension for life from 2016.
See why at end of my petition, in my WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT section at:
https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/state-pension-at-60-now
The civic duty is not being done by the media, by not informing the bulk of the people about parties who should, by the rules, be getting fair media coverage.
Labour could indeed have become smaller than the group of anti austerity parties come together in a powerful opposition.
This could still happen.
Tactical voting is on my little personal website, if only the people would share my website on their Twitter and Facebook pages, with links to the parties locked out of the media’s gaze.
2010 saw a landslide victory for the non-voters, with the so-called winning Tory or Labour or Lib Dem as low as 15,000 votes against up to 50,000 non-voters in voting areas with up to only 80,000 voters all told.
That is 80,000 voters who were registered to vote.
More people are not registered to vote today than there were in 2010.
So the media has destroyed democracy and brought in a dictatorship.
SEE HOW THE POOR 75 PER CENT VOTER NOW VASTLY OUTNUMBERS ALL OTHER VOTERS
http://www.anastasia-england.me.uk
Robert
My wife said do not forget to register but I did not bother. being disabled who the heck would I vote for.
JAMES MCGIBBON
Even the dead get a vote in Oirland.
damon
I don’t know …… whoever you fancied. Tory? Labour?
Ukip?