Get out the vote

Community Action, June 14, 2004

A federal election is ahead of us and once again we urge our readers to participate in the election process by helping to get out the vote.

The steady decline of voter participation is of concern. The turnout of electors in the last federal election was a little more than 60% and we note that it may not be any better this time around. Who were the 40% that were absent from the polls last time? They tended to be people in the lower income brackets and young people. The largest rate of absenteeism at the polls was among younger women. Only about 25% of women under 30 years of age voted in the previous federal election. Many of the non-voters make up the clientele of social service agencies.

The reasons for not Voting are many and varied. These include: fatalistic attitudes, a sense of powerlessness, and a feeling that one has no stake in the community. These attitudes are often found among the most vulnerable and disadvantaged elements of our society and the underlying aim of most social programs is to change such attitudes. Voting is an optimistic statement that we matter and have some influence over larger events.

Will larger turnouts assure socially progressive governments? Not necessarily. In countries where more than 90% of the eligible voters show up at the polls, the results sometimes produce retrograde governments, ones that promote social, racial and ethnic discord. However, in the long run, we believe that politicians must act in the interest of all of those who participate in elections. Full participation in voting is our best hope that the traditional Canadian values of peace, order and good government will prevail.

A vibrant democracy requires the fullest possible participation of its citizens and we urge our readers and their clients to vote.