DENNIS MYERS
Special to The Leader
In recent decades, about 60% of eligible U.S. voters cast a ballot during presidential elections.
During midterm elections, like this year, participation is only at around 40%. By international standards this is noticeably low. For example, according to fairvote.org, member nations of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), of which the U.S. is a member, have a voter participation rate of around 70%.
Voter turnout among the youngest Americans remains concerning. The “youth vote” continues to lag behind other age demographics, and has done so for several decades. Now the good news: According to statista.com, about 55% of voters aged 18–29 decided to cast a ballot in 2020, a substantial increase from the approximately 44% who voted in 2016.
Additionally, both the youth vote and voting overall increased when comparing the 2014 to the 2018 midterm elections. According to brookings.edu, overall voter turnout in 2020 was relatively high compared to recent decades, with 66.8% participation. Robust voter turnout is fundamental to a healthy democracy, and these results are encouraging.
Now back to the bad news: According to the Brennan Center For Justice (brennancenter.org), over 440 bills with provisions that restrict voting access were introduced in 49 states during the 2021 legislative sessions. At least 19 states have successfully passed 34 laws restricting access to voting.
Rather than try to appeal to an increasingly diverse voting public, these state legislatures would rather prevent people from voting. This is as undemocratic as it gets. If you’re unaware of who these anti-democratic forces are, individually or as a group, you need to start paying attention — quickly.
Maybe consider it like a homework assignment; you don’t wanna do it, but you know you should. It won’t take long to complete the assignment, as the major “villains” are obvious. Then perhaps it gets more difficult because you may feel compelled to do something. As they say, time is of the essence. Like climate change, I believe there is a tipping point here that we are rapidly approaching.
While there are many valuable forms of civic engagement, exercising your right to cast a ballot is perhaps both the most straightforward and the most important, considering the current threats to democracy our nation faces — mostly from within.
Endeavors like fighting for social and economic justice is an uphill battle, even in a relatively free society. How well will we all, but especially the less powerful, fare if we lose our democracy? If you’re scared, you’re right — you should be. A bulwark against autocracy is a politically educated populace that takes action, the most fundamental of which is protecting and exercising your constitutional right to vote.