highlander Wrote:Last Canadian Federal election the voter turnout was approx 60% and becoming less and less each election. That is pisspoor on our parts too.
Okay, but does poor voter turnout reflect poorly on Canada (and on the US), or does it reflect poorly on the politicians?
One reason for poor voter turnout (in municipal elections, especially) is that the electorate doesn't see a point in voting for one candidate over another. This may mean that there really are no issues, or it may mean that the politicians are failing to engage the public with issues they care about.
The latter situation is the case federally. Large groups of people don't feel that any of the parties present a platform that is worth voting for.
What seems to be happening in Canada (perhaps in the US, but I can't speak to that) is that politics still belongs to the baby boom. This is supported by analyses of voter turnout that show it is especially poor among younger people. Most of the national discourse is wrapped up in concerns dear to the baby boom at this point in their lives: taxes, health care, blah blah blah. Furthermore, the boomlet belongs to what the NYT has labelled the "postpolitical" era, and they seem (for the most part) much less concerned with traditional party politics -- but traditional party politics and ideological struggles still dominate the news.
(The same traditional values are responsible for the notion that poor voter turnout reflects poorly on the nation, and for that old saw, "if you don't vote, you aren't entitled to complain." This line of thinking is an attempt to force people into traditional ideological and party positions, rather than having the parties serve the public interest.)
The failure of our politicians to discover the issues that matter to a large proportion of the electorate, and to be governed by the electorate, reflects poorly on them, not on the electorate itself. Democracy isn't about people choosing among predetermined values; it's about government serving the people.
:rambo: :rambo: :rambo: :rambo: :rambo:
, and that voter turnouts were/are so low, and that so many people really don't care, or don't bother to get informed, is very troubling, and reflects quite piss poorly on your country *shrugs*,
