1.4 Why People Don't Vote

1. What percentage of Americans voted in the 2012 election? What percentage of registered voters voted in the 2012 election?

58.6 percent of eligible American voters actually voted in the 2012 presidential election. 84 percent of registered voters voted.

2. How do state requirements to register ahead of time prevent people from voting?

Primarily, people miss the deadline for registering to vote because most states require people to register much earlier than election day when many do not care about the election yet. Some people become ineligible due to state requirements on residency or criminal history.

3. What reason do most people give for not participating in the election?

They say that their votes won't matter. They say they are disinterested or disliked candidates.

4. How do families and upbringing impact voter turnout in the future?

In richer families, parents tell their children that voting is a responsibility that does matter, so they grow up to participate by voting. Their neighbors are also likely to have similar mindsets, so it creates a culture of political involvement. In other poorer households, politics can be portrayed as abstract or dirty or just unimportant, so the children grow up and do not vote.

5. Why does having so many elections in the US cause turnout to decrease?

It can be tiring to keep up with all the candidates, and it is easy to develop a habit of not voting.

6. How do political parties impact which people show up and vote?

They appeal to reliable supporter groups instead of trying to appeal to everyone, including unpredictable voters, due to the winner takes all nature of most elections.

7. What is Oregon experimenting with to try to increase voter turnout?

Oregon is trying to offer voting by mail.

8. What would be the likely effect of turning Election Day into a giant festival?

Having a party would set the cultural norms and expectations about voting and could attract more voters. After all, more people voted in the 19th century when elections involved drinking and partying.

9. Why do mandatory voting laws work if the punishments are not bad?

The law clearly demonstrates to people that they are expected to vote.

article: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/11/7/13536198/election-day-americans-vote

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