The voter turnout conundrum in America

Photo: Cayusa

Voter turnout is one of the main concerns of every electoral body when it comes to its democratic exercises. As stated in FairVote.org, a high voter turnout is an indicator of a healthy democracy, which is why every time there is an election there is also a wave of complaints about the low participation rate. However, believe it or not, the highest turnout in an American election was achieved in 1876 (81.8%), and even then we could not speak of real democratic participation, as women and members of the black community did not have the right to vote. This means that absenteeism is not a new problem in our society. What could be new, though, is the way to address it.

Many hypotheses have been offered on the cause for theseemingly unchanging electoral absenteeism in America. Francis Fukuyama affirms that the welfare state has made people comfortable, causing them not to vote. Others say technology is to blame, as people are excessively entertained by the gadgets they keep at home. Well, if technology is the enemy, why not use it to our advantage?

What analysts are deeming as ‘excessive comfort’ may actually be the sign that things have to change in order to engage people into democracy, as we are no longer the same citizens that voted in 1876. Our way of life has changed radically. No one would call us too comfortable or lazy because we don’t grow our own food or sew our own clothes. Our modern lifestyle demands speed and accessibility.

Over the years, manual voting has proved tremendously cumbersome. Identity theft remains rampant, printing errors in the paper ballots cost the government millions of dollars and cause people to vote mistakenly, and people with disabilities find it very difficult to cast their ballot. The 21st century has seen us adopt different automation mechanisms for other aspects of our life, so why not adopt them for democracy?

With its usability, accessibility and speed, e-voting comes out as the natural solution to the question of how to stop wrestling against technology to increase voter turnout. Venezuela, for instance, got an 80% voter turnout in its 2012 presidential elections, which were fully automated. Besides, the complete auditability of electronic voting platforms eliminates electoral fraud and boosts its reliability. 

The voter turnout conundrum is actually not a mystery at all. With technological tools available to encourage electoral participation and the acknowledgement from the President himself that waiting times for voting in the US need improvement, there is access to a solution that can help strengthen democracy by giving citizens an effective tool that will motivate them to exercise their right to vote easily and smoothly.

Irregularities in Zimbabwe expose the vulnerabilities of manual voting systems

This video is a vivid testimony of the numerous problems manual voting often encounters. The picturesque scene depicts an election official communicating voters that they had run out of ballots, and if voting were to be resumed, it would be done by reusing those already cast. Astonished voters expressed their anger, frustration, and determination to vote. 

Incidents such as this one at the local Zanu-PF elections sparked fears of even worse irregularities to come during the future presidential elections to be held this year or next. The worst part is that this was not an isolated incident. In other regions of the country, potential voters were screened for their political affiliation before they were allowed to register to vote.

Zimbabwe is yet another clear example of the need to transition from manual into an integral electronic voting solution. A fully automated and auditable electronic voting system, which includes biometric identification to access the precinct and activate the voting session, can eliminate these types of inconveniences and provide the levels of transparency modern democracies deserve. 

In a world where all the conditions to guarantee the success of an electoral process can be perfectly covered if the right system and provider are selected, “Not enough paper ballots” is an unacceptable excuse for any electoral authority. It’s their duty to provide an electoral kit that covers all citizens expected to exert their right to suffrage.

Palm Beach County’s New Voting Disaster

(March 21st, 2012) A new voting scandal erupted in Florida’s Palm Beach County when authorities incorrectly certified two candidates as winners in the Wellington Village Council elections.

Due to a suspect program flaw that seemingly got overlooked in the software supplied by Dominion Voting, the results that were certified and announced by the Palm Beach County Elections Office gave the victory to the wrong candidates.

This serious incident is reminiscent of the 2000 presidential election, when voting authorities and service providers were incapable of deploying efficient solutions and over two million votes were invalidated in what has become known as the Butterfly Ballot disaster. Palm Beach was among the counties using the obsolete technology that allegedly induced voters to make mistakes, either selecting the wrong candidates or making more than one vote in the ballot.

Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office Susan Bucher is now blaming Dominion Voting, the company providing voting and tabulating equipment to the county, for the recent electoral fiasco. She stated that software errors were the root of the problems. The company is disputing her argument and claims to be "investigating the source of the anomaly”.

Regardless of where the blame will fall, Palm Beach County’s electoral authorities need to guarantee the success of elections soon to come. It is imperative to better train poll workers and election officials; and to perform sufficient testing and auditing before, during and after each process. Only a few weeks ago, and while facing all sorts of difficulties in the testing stages, Dominion offered modems to reduce the time to produce results. In the field tests they found out that the modems were incompatible with the county's phone lines. In light of the software & hardware know-how and experience now available in the market however, errors of this type are unacceptable. 

It has been almost ten years since President Bush signed the Help America Vote Act into a federal law. HAVA was the response to the controversy surrounding the 2000 presidential elections in which he was reelected President. The law brought positive changes such as the creation of the Election Assistance Commission, mandating the replacement of obsolete technology (punch cards and lever-based voting systems), and setting a minimum of election administration standards. 

Electronic voting has surpassed manual voting when clear rules and experienced, competent authorities are met with a technology provider capable of delivering up to the expectations. Around the world, electronic voting has been steadily implemented with excellent results. Moreover, it has proven key in contributing to bring stability to nations with politically turbulent atmospheres. 

Unfortunately, Palm Beach County, home of paradisiacal beaches and full of vacation resorts, has a sad record of voting scandals, and this new incident, where Dominion Voting and the Palm Beach County electoral authorities have been the protagonists, has not helped to make it any better. 

Overall, it's obvious that the United States of America, a foremost economic, military and technological world power, needs to step up and set more rigorous standards in its voting practices. Voting is the fundamental act of a nation’s core values, Democracy.

Can E-Voting Encourage Better Voter Turnout Among Young People?

Real Democracy Now Brighton Source: everystock.com 

Voter apathy has always been a problem. It has become increasingly difficult to motivate the electorate and get them interested in politics and plans and everything that is at stake. One demographic in particular has consistently been difficult to engage: youth. This includes the demographic group with voters up to and even beyond 30 years of age.

However, with the adoption an automation of electoral voting systems and other well planned communication strategies, it is possible to encourage greater voter turnout among this important demographic.