Should Americans Be Required To Vote Dbq Essay

To force someone to vote even though they don’t want to, not only goes against their rights, it also goes against our basic beliefs as a nation. Even if you force someone to vote, that doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t make blank or null ballots to avoid the punishment that comes along with not voting. In Peru where there’s mandatory voting and an enforced penalty of $35, 13% of the votes are blank or null. (Document E) As said in Document G, telling someone to just vote, is not expressing civic virtue. You’re not more or less of a citizen if you

One reason that Americans shouldn’t be required to vote is because not very many people vote due to their education level or because of their age. People who have an education level less than a highschool diploma are less likely to vote than a person that has gone to college and is a postgraduate (Doc. B). People who are 60 and older have 70-75% voter turnout as to where people who are

Firstly, both sides of the spectrum which are upon those who agree and disagree both have compelling cases in this question. Such as citizen number two describes that “ if we force everyone to vote, those who don’t vote or care about the process of voting will not respect the process. Thus, making elections chaotic and improper “. On the other hand the opposite side of the spectrum where citizen number one is located,

Many people feel that voting is important and most people feel like it’s only right to do your part in choosing your leader. In the US we are not forced to vote however some feel we should be. Now in the 1820s in america the only group of people that can vote was white men who owned land. As times changed other groups got the chance to vote and participate in choosing our leader which is in fact a big deal. In my personal opinion I don’t think we should be required to vote because no matter what it is us as U.S. citizen should always have a choice.

From a purely principled position on freedom and what a right is, voting should not be voluntary. Something is a right when you have the free ability to choose to do it and not choose to do it; for instance, freedom of speech is a right because you can say whatever you want to say and also say nothing at all. If you are obligated to do something by jail time and fines, and even neither of those things, then it is not a right but an obligation; you do not have the right to pay taxes because you cannot choose not to pay taxes. Therefore, from an argument of rights and principles, compulsory voting should not be legal in America. However, there are many benefits to the idea of compulsory voting and even a potential counteraction towards the argument

I understand that voting in election is a freedom and choice however I feel as It would be more effective if people practiced mandatory voting. In my opinion this would lessen the amount of disputes people have after elections, as everyone would have a say. People will chose not to vote because the feel as their one vote is not going to change the outcome. Every year numbers of voters have decreased a substantial amount as I think people are not well enough educated on how the system works or even the party they are wanting to win. Many people have collected data over the years to collect the number and locations of voters and see how they have transformed. I believe it is tremendously important to vote even if you only have that “one” vote. People do not exercise their right to vote enough. Over the years just since 2008-2012 the number of voters have substantially dropped, for example of total of 2,228,417 votes have decreased. I am hoping to see the numbers rise back up as the new generation of teenagers will soon hit the voting

I disagree with the statement that voting should be made mandatory. If voting was made mandatory, many people who don't know anything about politics would be voting. A lot of people in our country do not know much about our government, which is a serious issue. Many young people also don't care to vote, so we shouldn't try to make them.

Everyone should vote. It is a right but it’s also a responsibility. It is a right because everyone should be able to choose who governs them and how they are governed, being able to vote is a god given right. Voting is a responsibility because if the people want a change within the country the easiest way to voice your opinion is voting. Even though they are over 300 million people in the United States, some elections have come down to under a couple thousand votes. For example in the 2000 general election George Bush won the electoral vote but not the popular vote, ironically he won the election by winning Florida which only came down to under a thousand votes. Although this country finally allows all types of people to vote not everyone votes,

First, compulsory voting goes against the freedom associated with democracy. When it comes to voting people has the freedom to speak or not say anything. It seems unusual to have an action that many consider as a right as a required duty. In text 3, it states “...some people might even interpret mandatory voting as a violation of [the] First Amendment’s prohibition of compelled speech.” Compelling people goes against our democratic rights. To make people vote politicians should be able to persuade the importance of voting for them to citizens. In text 4, it states “In the 2008 US Presidential election, people sensed a new political

It would be a good idea to have a law that required registered voters to vote in elections. If there was a law that made people vote, or at least gave them some incentive to vote, there would be a large increase in the amount of people voting. According to the paper by Eric Weiner Australia’s percent of registered voters voting in elections increased from less than 60 percent to 95 percent. That is over a 35 percent increase which is a huge deal when it comes to the amount of people voting, verses those who aren’t. In Australia there is only 5 percent of registered voters who aren't voting while in america is about 43 percent of voters according to Washington post. That is a huge difference.

Compulsory voting is principally undemocratic – freedom of choice must include the freedom not to choose. Forcing citizens to vote violates individual freedom, a key staple of American democracy. Voting must be left to the individual to choose to participate or not to participate because the right to vote or not is protected by the

I think voting should be mandatory. I also think their should be a simple test or class that is required to be taken. In that class I think it should explain the issues and how the republican party views a solution to the issue and how the democratic party views a solution to the issue. I also think that voters should have to take a civics class as well to understand the history and amendments and certain elections that have stood out.

The whole definition and purpose for a democracy is so that the power lies in the people to choose who they want as their leader. If choosing who they want means that they don’t want to vote at all then they shouldn’t be forced to vote. It is one of our responsibilities but just because it is our responsibility does not make it mandatory. The people choose to elect someone to represent them in the democracy, yes it is a privilege and something we should not take for granted, but to make a law to force someone to vote would not be supported by the people and a democracy is centered around the people and their wishes. To be able to vote, you have to be educated on current political and social issues in order to make the best decision for our nation. Some people lack either the desire or the resources to do this and think that it would be in the best interest not to vote. If these people did vote, who knows how the country or government will turn out. The philosopher, John Stewart Mill said that, “The worth of a state, in the long run, is the worth of the individuals composing of it.” He believes that each individual is the key to a functioning

Voting is necessary for the healthy functioning of a democratic society, yet many people choose not to vote in local, state, or national elections. It is believed that everyone should vote for who they agree with for a better functioning office, which meets the needs of the people. However, this isn't always the case.

The United States election of 2016 inspired many people to vote but the swirling accusations between the candidates also disillusioned many voters. Many individuals displayed apathy and indifference to the issues and mostly the candidates that were running for the Presidency of the United States. Perhaps requiring all United States citizens to vote could be a possible solution to this dilemma. Approximately twenty-four nations have some kind of compulsory voting law, representing 17% of the world’s democratic nations (Bok, 1998). Some of those nations include Australia, Singapore, Mexico and Brazil. If it works for them, it could possibly work for the United States. Would mandatory voting eliminate the voter indifference if a good system was put into place? Many individuals oppose mandatory voting because they believe it infringes on their individual liberties. The idea of mandatory voting laws sparks good debate between both sides. The goal in the end is to have a true democracy in our country in which the government is ruled by the majority of the people who are eligible to vote.