Mandatory Voting In Canada

The voting rate in America has been very low the past few elections. There are many reasons people feel that people aren’t going to the polls to vote. For example so people believe that its because the people running for positions of power aren’t the the best so nobody votes. Other people believe that its or right as Americans to go to the polls on election day. Forcing People to go vote on election day is not democratic because we are given the freedom to do what we want.

In America, many citizens choose not to vote every year. Although, The United States of America is a democracy, Americans should be required to vote. Whether the voting is for local places or for the government, citizens should be required to vote. This will give everyone a chance to speak their minds and learn more about politics. Compulsory voting is important because everyone should have a chance to vote for what they believe in.

The young as well as the older people of Canada seem to be in a deadlock. The question of if the federal government should or should not lower the voting age is a question debated surely around the dinner tables of families in Canada, as well as in the ranks of the government. Some people even suggest that the age needs to be raised. What would make people want the voting age to be lowered to an even lower age than the young adult age of 18? On the other hand how can the youth of Canada who have their own individual views be able to make a difference without being able to vote? Both sides provide for an intriguing look into the facts and resolutions for an appropriate way to either change the voting age or keep

In recent years, society has noticed increasingly minute numbers of voters. Regardless of what is causing people to stay home, it is a big issue. Voting is a right, every citizen is entitled to having a voice in the government. We can choose to vote or we can choose to abstain. This is not an issue, until voting numbers are so low it is hard to even call elections. To help fix this, countries have implemented a system called "Compulsory Voting", or more blatantly put as "Mandatory Voting". This system would require all citizens (capable) to vote. On paper, this seems like a good idea. However, it is a removal of right. To have a right is to have an option. We as citizens have the right to almost anything we want. The Constitution gives us options. You wouldn't say we have the right to pay taxes. We are required to pay taxes. Obligations are not considered rights. Making the right to vote mandatory would be removing one keyword. RIGHT.

Much like a draft persuades those involved in it to learn about what they are fighting for compulsory voting would lead to many people becoming more passionate about the subjects that they are voting on and as such learn about these topics. If the state compels their citizens to vote then a lot of the burden shifts from the individual that plans to vote moreso to the state. This would lead to the area having to introduce new and quicker ways to vote such as one day voter registration, moving voting locations, and locations to vote in everyday locations. Mandatory voting would also allow or at least comple lower income, younger, and non-white voters to take part in the system whose voices would usually not be heard as much as the general populace. A better informed and more diverse electorate are more prone to participate in the political

Mandatory voting in America should be implied in the political system. Countries such as Australia and Belgium have already enforced this law on its people, and have had great results in the increasing turnout of voters going to polls. In excess of seventy years in Australia, voters have been obliged to appear to survey Election Day. Disappointment to show up causes a fine of up to fifteen dollars. Australian races since mandatory voting was implemented the turnout has reached an amount of ninety percent and above. Australian citizens have gotten use to showing up to polls and voting that it is a common obligation in their lives. (Ornstein) Based on this statistic mandatory voting has a clear effect. It raises participation rates this would also prompt more Americans to pay attention to which candidate to vote for. Mandatory voting will help change the political system of the United States, which will lead to different political culture and ultimately increase voter-turnout. As well as engage the citizens of our nation to vote who they feel is necessary. Money is also a big issue in becoming a president or even getting people to notice a candidate. Billions of dollars go into these campaigns, but if mandatory voting was enforced, this would lower the amount of money spent tremendously candidates can focus on debates and talk about a right path for our nation. Overall, mandatory voting would create a stronger, smarter, and more democratic United States of America.

Since the turn of the twenty first century, in Canada voter turnout has made a significant and consecutive decline. In the last five federal elections on average only sixty-one per cent of eligible voters voted. If each eligible citizen voted in an election the government would be on par with the primary interests of the people. The easiest way to achieve this objective is by implementing a compulsory voting system. Mandatory voting systems are appealing because all citizens are affected by decisions made by the government, so it makes sense to have all those affected apart of the election process. As a result, the voting results would be more representative of the country and that would lead to an increase of stability and legitimacy.

Canada’s friendly neighbor to the South, the US, has an electoral system that is composed of 3 separate elections, one of them deciding the head of state. The president elected by the people and he or she is the determining person of the country’s political system. In the US runs like a majority system” In Canada, however, elections are held slightly differently. Citizens vote for a Member of Parliament in a 308-seat house and candidates win not by a majority, unlike in the US, but by a plurality. This means that a candidate can actually win by simply having more votes than the other candidates. This method of representative democracy, in general, does not cause too much controversy in a global scope but has

The issue of electoral reform has become more important than ever in Canada in recent years as the general public has come to realize that our current first-past-the-post, winner-take-all system, formally known as single-member plurality (SMP) has produced majority governments of questionable legitimacy. Of the major democracies in the world, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are the only countries that still have SMP systems in place. Interestingly enough, there has been enormous political tension and division in the last few years in these countries, culminating with the election results in Canada and the USA this year that polarized both countries. In the last year we have seen

A compulsory voting system similar to the one used in Australia is not a system Canada should implement. Compulsory voting in the context of a democratic society can be a misleading term (Lever, 2010). Canada practices the secret ballot process in voting, and so it is impossible to verify if someone has cast a legally valid ballot. If countries have a singular goal of simply increasing voter turnout, compulsory voting could remedy this problem and it should be more accurately defined as being compulsory voter turnout (Lever, 2010). The belief that compulsory voting inherently improves democracy is misleading (Lever, 2010). Canada should not force its citizen’s to vote because other then increasing voter turnout, compulsory voting would

In February 2017, Prime Minister (PM) Justin Trudeau announced that his government would not include electoral reform in the mandate of newly appointed Minister of Democratic Institutions, Karina Gould. This stands in contrast to campaign promises the Liberal party made during the 2015 general election where, then candidate Trudeau, promised that the first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system would be abolished in time for the 2019 election; in favour of a proportionally representative system that was less binary in result and more conducive to diversity in representation. He defended his position, stating that after extensive review on the part of Minister Gould’s predecessor, it was clear that Canadians did not have a clear preference

Recently, there has been some debate whether the voting age should be lowered from 18 to 16, in an attempt to increase voter turnout. Yes, it may succeed in that but I believe the most important thing beyond voter turnout is educated voting.

For years now, the percentage of people showing up to vote in Canada has been decreasing, dropping from [insert %] to [insert %]. Regardless, it is essential that as many people as possible vote to ensure that the decisions being made really are the ones people want. Evidently, a solution is required to encourage more Canadian citizens to vote. The problem can easily be solved by creating a law that requires all citizens to either vote or pay a fine of $20, as this will greatly increase voter turnout, broaden the demographic, and provide decisions that are better for the nation as a whole. Obviously, making voting mandatory would increase the voter turnout automatically, since most citizens would probably prefer

Mandatory democracy can raise political interest among people. When people who are not interested in politics are forced to vote, some of them start to feel responsible for results of elections. They begin to watch political news, read journals and articles to have sufficient knowledge about politics in general and politicians, who they vote for or against. As Jake Keith and Guang-Zhen Sun describe in their article, when people are force to vote, it increases their interest about politics, so compulsory voting raises the value of individual votes (64).

Elections are the most vital mechanism for a democracy since it is the role of the citizens to elect the representatives of their government. As one of the most established democracies, Canada had been experiencing decreasing participation in its elections. In 2008, voter turnout in Canada hit its lowest point at an average of 58.8%, keeping in mind that the average voter turnout in Canada has been 70.7% (Canada, 2017). Even though there may not be one coherent explanation, there are a few predictors that could justify the decline in Canada’s voter turnout. Firstly, political interest is essential in motivating citizens to participate in politics, and the least informed citizens are the less motivated they are to participate. Secondly, personal barriers such as age, gender, race, language and socio-economic status play a major role as a determinant for the participation in elections. Finally, Canada’s current electoral process - the system in which citizens use to cast their votes is a factor that may deter participants from voting because of its cited weaknesses. For instance, the current system has brought into question its lack of democracy and representation. Therefore, while participation in federal elections is essential to a functioning democracy, there has been a decline in voter turnout due to lack of political interest, personal barriers, and the electoral process.