Voters lining up outside a Baghdad polling station during the 2005 Iraqi election. Baghdad (بغداد) is the Capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate, with which it is also coterminous Voter turnout was considered high despite widespread concerns of violence.

Voting Part of a series of articles on Politics and Elections

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Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election. Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office An absentee ballot is a Vote cast by someone who is unable or unwilling to attend the official Polling station. Abstention is a term in Election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote (on election day or in Parliamentary procedure, is present A ballot is a device (originally a small ball—see blackball) used to record choices made by Voters Each voter uses one ballot and ballots are not A ballot box is a temporarily sealed container usually cuboid though sometimes a tamper resistant bag with a narrow slot in the top sufficient to accept a ballot paper Ballot stuffing is the illegal act of one person submitting multiple Ballots during a Vote in which only one ballot per person is permitted Early voting, is the process which voters can cast their vote on a single or series of days prior to an election Election Day Registration, also known as "same-day voter registration" permits eligible citizens to register and vote on Election Day In Party-list proportional representation systems an election threshold is a clause that stipulates that a party must receive a minimum percentage of votes either None of the Above ( NOTA) or against all is a Ballot choice in some Jurisdictions or Organizations placed so as to allow the The paradox of voting, also referred to as Downs paradox is a reference to the fact that for a rational self-interested Voter, the costs of voting Postal voting describes the method of voting in an election whereby ballot papers are distributed and/or returned by post to electors in contrast to electors voting in person at a A precinct is a space enclosed by the walls or other boundaries of a particular place or building or by an arbitrary and imaginary line drawn around it In an Open list proportional representation system voters can indicate their preference for a particular individual candidate on a Party list by A Protest vote is a Vote cast in an Election to demonstrate the caster's unhappiness with the choice of candidates or refusal of the current political system A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when there is some question in regards to a given voter's eligibility. A refused ballot, or similar alternative is a choice available to voters in many Elections. The secret ballot is a voting method in which a Voter 's choices are confidential In Voting, a Ballot is considered to be spoilt, void, null or informal if it is regarded by the Election authorities In Voting systems tactical voting (or strategic voting or sophisticated voting) occurs when a voter supports a candidate other than his or her A ticket refers to a single Election choice which fills more than one Political office or seat Ticket Splitters are those who vote for candidates from more than one Political party when they vote for public offices voting on the basis of individual personalities and records A vote center sometimes known as a super precinct is a Polling place that combines multiple precincts allowing voters to choose at which location to vote Vote pairing (or vote swapping as it has also been called is the method where a voter in one district agrees to vote tactically for a less-preferred candidate or party who In Politics, voter fatigue is the apathy that the electorate can experience when they are required to vote too often Voter registration is the requirement in some democracies for Citizens and residents to check in with some central registry specifically for the purpose of being allowed A voting booth or polling booth is a room or cabin in a Polling station where voters are able to cast their vote in private to protect the secrecy of the ballot Voting machines are the total combination of mechanical electromechanical or electronic equipment (including Software, Firmware, and documentation required to program A ballot is a device (originally a small ball—see blackball) used to record choices made by Voters Each voter uses one ballot and ballots are not An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system In general, low turnout may be due to disenchantment, indifference, or contentment. Disenchantment ( Entzauberung) in Social sciences refers to the Devaluation of Mysticism. Low turnout is often considered to be undesirable, and there is much debate over the factors that affect turnout and how to increase it. In spite of significant study into the issue, scholars are divided on reasons for the decline. Its cause has been attributed to a wide array of economic, demographic, cultural, technological, and institutional factors. Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Demographics or demographic data refers to selected population characteristics as used in government Marketing or opinion research or the Demographic profiles Technology is a broad concept that deals with a Species ' usage and knowledge of Tools and Crafts and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt There have been many efforts to increase turnout and encourage voting.

Different countries have very different average voter turnouts. In Political geography and International politics, a country is a Political division of a geographical entity For example, in the United States, approximately 70% of the eligible population registers to vote, which may be an important contributing factor in the low average election turnout, which in recent decades just barely has topped 50% of voting age population in presidential elections. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the However, in 2004, the presidential election turnout was up to 56. 70% of all US citizens old enough to vote. ^[1] In Australia, which has compulsory voting, and Malta, participation reaches 95%. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Compulsory voting requires electors to Vote in Elections or attend a polling place on voting day Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands These differences are believed to be caused by a mix of cultural and institutional factors.

Reasons for voting

In any large election the chance of any one vote influencing the outcome is low; a single vote in a voting scheme such as the Electoral College in the United States has an even lower chance of influencing the outcome. ^[2] This causes a difficulty for rational choice theory, in that it seems that a rational individual should not vote. Rational choice theory, also known as rational action theory, is a framework for understanding and often formally modeling social and economic behavior Studies using game theory, which takes into account the ability of voters to interact, have also found that the expected turnout for any large election should be zero. Game theory is a branch of Applied mathematics that is used in the Social sciences (most notably Economics) Biology, Engineering, ^[3]

The basic formula for determining whether someone will vote is

PB + D > C^[4]

Here, P is the probability that an individual's vote will affect the outcome of an election, and B is the perceived benefit of that person's favored political party or candidate being elected. Probability is the likelihood or chance that something is the case or will happen A political party is a Political organization that seeks to attain and maintain political power within Government, usually by participating in electoral D originally stood for democracy or civic duty, but today represents any social or personal gratification an individual gets from voting. In Economics, utility is a measure of the relative satisfaction from or desirability of Consumption of various Goods and services. C is the time, effort, and financial cost involved in voting. Since P is virtually zero in most elections, PB is also near zero, and D is thus the most important element in motivating people to vote. For a person to vote, these factors must outweigh C.

Riker and Ordeshook developed the modern understanding of D. They listed five major forms of gratification that people receive for voting: complying with the social obligation to vote; affirming one's allegiance to the political system; affirming a partisan preference (also known as expressive voting, or voting for a candidate to express support, not to achieve any outcome); affirming one's importance to the political system; and, for those who find politics interesting and entertaining, researching and making a decision. ^[5] Other political scientists have since added other motivators and questioned some of Riker and Ordeshook's assumptions. All of these concepts are inherently imprecise, making it difficult to discover exactly why people choose to vote.

Recently, several scholars have considered the possibility that B includes not only a personal interest in the outcome, but also a concern for the welfare of others in the society (or at least other members of one's favorite group or party). ^[6][7] In particular, experiments in which subject altruism was measured using a dictator game showed that concern for the well-being of others is a major factor in predicting turnout^[8] and political participation. Altruism is selfless concern for the welfare of others It is a traditional Virtue in many cultures and central to many religious traditions The dictator game is a very simple game in Experimental economics, similar to the Ultimatum game. ^[9] Note that this motivation is distinct from D, because voters must think others benefit from the outcome of the election, not their act of voting in and of itself.

The significance of voter turnout

It is often considered that high voter turnouts are desirable, though among political scientists and economists specialising in public choice, the issue is still debated. ^[10] A high turnout is generally seen as evidence of the legitimacy of the current system. Dictators have often fabricated high turnouts in showcase elections for this purpose. A dictator is an Authoritarian ruler (eg Absolutist or autocratic) who assumes sole and absolute power without hereditary ascension such as an Absolute A show election or a sham election is an Election that is held purely for show that is without any significant political purpose For instance, Saddam Hussein's 2002 referendum was claimed to have had 100% participation. Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti ( Arabic: ar صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي --> April 28 1937 &ndash December 30 ^[11] Opposition parties sometimes boycott votes they feel are unfair or illegitimate, or if the election is for a government that is considered illegitimate. For example, the Holy See instructed Italian Catholics to boycott national elections for several decades after the creation of the State of Italy. The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, commonly known as the Pope, and is the preeminent Episcopal see of the Roman Catholic ^[12] In some countries, there are threats of violence against those who vote, such as during the 2005 Iraq elections, an example of voter suppression. Voter suppression is a form of Electoral fraud and refers to the use of governmental power political campaign strategy and private resources aimed at suppressing (i However, some political scientists question the view that high turnout is an implicit endorsement of the system. Mark N. Franklin contends that in European Union elections opponents of the federation, and of its legitimacy, are just as likely to vote as proponents. Elections in the European Union take place every five years by universal adult suffrage. ^[13]

Assuming that low turnout is a reflection of disenchantment or indifference, a poll with very low turnout may not be an accurate reflection of the will of the people. Popular sovereignty or the sovereignty of the people is the belief that the legitimacy of the State is created by the will or consent of its people, who On the other hand, if low turnout is a reflection of contentment of voters about likely winners or parties, then low turnout is as legitimate as high turnout, as long as the right to vote exists. Still, low turnouts can lead to unequal representation among various parts of the population. In developed countries, non-voters tend to be concentrated in particular demographic and socioeconomic groups, especially the young and the poor. Youth is the period from infancy or childhood to maturity Usage Around the world the terms "youth" " Adolescent " "teenager" and Poverty (also called penury) is deprivation of common necessities that determine the quality of life including food clothing shelter and safe Drinking water, and However, in India, which boasts an electorate of more than 670 million people, the opposite is true. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The poor, who comprise the majority of the demographic, are more likely to vote than the rich and the middle classes. In low-turnout countries, these groups are often significantly under-represented in elections. This has the potential to skew policy. For instance, a high voter turnout among seniors coupled with a low turnout among the young may lead to more money for seniors' health care, and less for youth employment schemes. Old age consists of ages nearing or surpassing the Average life span of Human beings and thus the end of the human life cycle. Health care is the prevention treatment and management of illness and the preservation of mental health through the services offered by the medical, Nursing Some nations thus have rules that render an election invalid if too few people vote, such as Serbia, where three successive presidential elections were rendered invalid in 2003. Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country

Socio-economic factors

In each nation, some parts of society are more likely to vote than others. In high-turnout nations, these differences tend to be limited: as turnout approaches 90% it becomes difficult to find differences of much significance between voters and nonvoters, but in low turnout nations the differences between voters and non-voters can be quite marked. ^[14] These differences appear to persist over time—the best predictor of individual turnout is whether or not a person voted in the previous election. ^[15] As a result, many scholars think of turnout as habitual behavior that can be learned or unlearned, especially among young adults. ^[16]

However, socioeconomic factors significantly affect whether or not individuals may develop such habits. The most important socioeconomic factor in voter turnout is education. Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency The more educated a person is, the more likely he or she is to vote, even when controlled for other factors such as income and class that are closely associated with education level. Income, refers to consumption opportunity gained by an entity within a specified time frame which is generally expressed in monetary terms Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. Income has some effect independently: wealthier people are more likely to vote, regardless of their educational background. There is some debate over the effects of ethnicity, race, and gender. The term race or racial group usually refers to the concept of categorizing Humans into Populations or groups on the basis of various sets Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women extending from the biological to the social In the past, these factors unquestionably influenced turnout in many nations. Nowadays, the consensus among political scientists is that these factors have little effect in Western democracies when education and income differences are taken into account. ^[17] However, since different ethnic groups typically have different levels of education and income, there are important differences in turnout between such groups in many societies. Other demographic factors have an important influence: young people are far less likely to vote than the elderly; and single people are less likely to vote than those who are married. Occupation has little effect on turnout, with the notable exception of higher voting rates among government employees in many countries. ^[18]

There can also be regional differences in voter turnout. One issue that arises in continent-spanning nations, such as Australia, Canada, the United States and Russia, is that of time zones. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Canada attempted to ban the broadcasting of election results in any region where the polls have not yet closed; this ban was upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada. The Supreme Court of Canada ( French: Cour suprême du Canada) is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeal in the Canadian In several recent Australian national elections, the citizens of Western Australia knew which party would form the new government up to an hour before the polling booths in their State closed.

Genetic factors

While socioeconomic factors are undoubtedly important for turnout, new evidence suggests that genetic factors may also be important. Scholars recently used twin studies of validated turnout in Los Angeles and self-reported turnout in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to establish that the decision to vote in the United States has very strong heritability. Twin studies are one of a family of designs in Behavior genetics which aid the study of individual differences by highlighting the role of environmental and genetic The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (also called Add Health) is the first and only nationally-representative study of Adolescent sexuality, which In Genetics, Heritability is the proportion of phenotypic variation in a population that is attributable to genetic variation among individuals ^[19] If so, it could help to explain why parental turnout is such a strong predictor of voting in young people^[20]--people inherit genes as well as behaviors from their parents. It might also help to explain why voting appears to be habitual^[21]--if there is an innate predisposition to vote or abstain, this would explain why past voting behavior is such a good predictor of future voter behavior.

In addition to the twin study method, scholars have used gene association studies to analyze voter turnout. Twin studies are one of a family of designs in Behavior genetics which aid the study of individual differences by highlighting the role of environmental and genetic Two genes that influence social behavior have been directly associated with voter turnout, specifically those regulating the serotonin system in the brain via the production of monoamine oxidase and 5HTT. Serotonin (ˌsɛrəˈtoʊnən ( 5-hydroxytryptamine, or 5-HT) is a Monoamine Neurotransmitter synthesized in serotonergic Neurons ^[22]

Differences between elections

Within countries there can be important differences in turnout between individual elections. Elections where control of the national executive is not at stake generally have much lower turnouts—often half that for general elections. In Political science and Constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the State. Municipal and provincial elections, and by-elections to fill casual vacancies, typically have lower turnouts, as do elections for the parliament of the supranational European Union, which is separate from the executive branch of the EU's government. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in In the United States, midterm congressional elections attract far lower turnouts than Congressional elections held concurrently with Presidential ones. ^[23] Runoff elections also tend to attract lower turnouts.

In theory, one of the factors that is most likely to increase turnout is a close race. With an intensely polarized electorate and all polls showing a close finish between President George W. Bush and Democratic challenger John F. Kerry, the turnout in the 2004 U.S. presidential election, was close to 60%, resulting in a record number of popular votes for both candidates; despite losing the election, Kerry even surpassed Ronald Reagan's 1984 record in terms of the number of popular votes received. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. } John Forbes Kerry (born December 11 1943 is an American Politician who is currently serving his fourth term as the junior United States Senator The United States presidential election of 2004 was held on Tuesday November 2, 2004, to elect the President of the United States. However, this race also demonstrates the influence that contentious social issues can have on voter turnout; for example, the voter turnout rate in 1860 wherein anti-slavery candidate Abraham Lincoln won the election was the second-highest on record (81. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another 2 percent, second only to 1876, with 81. 8 percent). Nonetheless, there is evidence to support the argument that predictable election results—where one vote is not seen to be able to make a difference—have resulted in lower turnouts, such as Bill Clinton's 1996 re-election (which featured the lowest voter turnout in the United States since 1924), the United Kingdom general election of 2001, and the 2005 Spanish referendum on the European Constitution; all of these elections produced decisive results on a low turnout. The United States presidential election of 1996 was a contest between the Democratic national ticket of President Bill Clinton of Arkansas and Vice Results |} Total votes cast 26368204 All parties with more than 500 votes shown The Spanish referendum on the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe is a consultative Referendum that was held on 20 February 2005 to decide whether Spain

Bad weather can reduce turnouts,^[24] as can the season and the day of the week (although many nations hold all their elections on the same weekday). Weekend and summer elections find more of the population on holiday or uninterested in politics, and have lower turnouts. When nations set fixed election dates, these are usually midweek during the spring or autumn to maximize turnout. Variations in turnout between elections tend to be insignificant. It is extremely rare for factors such as competitiveness, weather, and time of year to cause an increase or decrease in turnout of more than five percentage points, far smaller than the differences between groups within society, and far smaller than turnout differentials between nations. ^[25]

International differences

Election turnout in national lower house
elections from 1960 to 1995

Country	# of elections	Turnout
Australia*	14	95%
Malta	6	94%
Austria	9	92%
Belgium*	12	91%
Italy	9	90%
Luxembourg*	7	90%
Iceland	10	89%
New Zealand	12	88%
Denmark	14	87%
Germany	9	86%
Sweden	14	86%
Greece*	10	86%
Venezuela**	7	85%
Czech Republic	2	85%
Brazil*	3	83%
Netherlands***	7	83%
Costa Rica	8	81%
Norway	9	81%
Romania	2	81%
Bulgaria	2	80%
Israel	9	80%
Portugal	9	79%
Finland	10	78%
Canada	11	76%
France	9	76%
United Kingdom	9	76%
Ireland	11	74%
Spain	6	73%
Japan	12	71%
Estonia	2	69%
Hungary	2	66%
Russia	2	61%
India	6	58%
United States****	9	54%
Switzerland	8	54%
Poland	2	51%
*Nations with compulsory voting
**Compulsory voting until 1988
***Does not include pre-1968 elections, when compulsory voting was in place
****Includes only Congressional elections held in same year as presidential ones. A lower house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Upper house. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Luxembourg (Groussherzogtum Lëtzebuerg Grand-Duché de Luxembourg Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small Landlocked country in Western Europe, bordered by Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland ( ( Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland ( New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Venezuela (ˌvɛnəˈzweɪlə) officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish República Bolivariana de Venezuela) is a country on the The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( Spanish: Costa Rica or República de Costa Rica,) is a Country in Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania The state of Bulgaria (България transliterated bg-Latn ''Balgaria'' The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name language and alphabet of the First Bulgarian For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Compulsory voting requires electors to Vote in Elections or attend a polling place on voting day Voter turnout rates for Midterm election are approximately 10–15 percentage points lower than the General election immediately preceding it.
Numbers from Mark N. Franklin's "Electoral Participation", found in Controversies in Voting Behavior (2001). Includes only "free" elections

Voter turnout varies considerably between countries. It tends to be lower in the United States, Asia and Latin America than most of Europe, Canada and Oceania. Western Europe averages a 77% turnout, the United States closer to 50%, and Latin America 54% since 1945. ^[26] The differences between nations tend to be greater than those between classes, ethnic groups, or regions within nations. Confusingly, some of the factors that cause internal differences do not seem to apply on a global level. For instance, nations with better-educated populaces do not have higher turnouts. Political scientists have identified two main causes of these international differences—culture and institutions—although this is controversial.

Cultural factors

Wealth and literacy have some effect on turnout, but are not reliable measures. Countries such as Angola and Ethiopia have long had high turnouts, but so have the wealthy states of Europe. Angola, officially the Republic of Angola (República de Angola Pronounced ʁɛˈpublikɐ dɨ ɐ̃ˈgɔlɐ Repubilika ya Ngola is a country in south-central NOTE This intro is the result of careful NPOV work Please do not make potentially controversial edits to it without first discussing on the talk page The United Nations Human Development Index shows some correlation between higher standards of living and higher turnout. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security The Human Development Index ( HDI) is an index combining normalized measures of Life expectancy, Literacy, Educational attainment, and GDP The age of a democracy is also an important factor. Elections require considerable involvement by the population, and it takes some time to develop the cultural habit of voting, and the associated understanding of and confidence in the electoral process. This factor may explain the lower turnouts in the newer democracies of Eastern Europe and Latin America. Much of the impetus to vote comes from a sense of civic duty, which takes time and certain social conditions to develop. G. Bingham Powell lists four major attitudes that have a strongly positive effect on voter turnout, attitudes that can take decades to develop:

• trust in government;
• degree of partisanship among the population;
• interest in politics, and
• belief in the efficacy of voting. ^[27]

Demographics also have an effect. Older people tend to vote more than youths, so societies where the average age is somewhat higher, such as Europe; have higher turnouts than somewhat younger countries such as the United States. Populations that are more mobile and those that have lower marriage rates tend to have lower turnout. In countries that are highly multicultural and multilingual, it can be difficult for national election campaigns to engage all sectors of the population.

The nature of elections also varies between nations. In the United States, negative campaigning and character attacks are more common than elsewhere, potentially suppressing turnouts. Negative campaigning is trying to win an advantage by referring to negative aspects of an opponent or of a policy rather than emphasizing one's own positive attributes or preferred The focus placed on get out the vote efforts and mass-marketing can have important effects on turnout. " Get out the vote," sometimes " GOTV," is a term used to describe two categories of political activity both aimed at increasing the number of votes cast Partisanship is an important impetus to turnout, with the highly partisan more likely to vote. Turnout tends to be higher in nations where political allegiance is closely linked to class, ethnic, linguistic, or religious loyalties. ^[28] Countries where multiparty systems have developed also tend to have higher turnouts. A multi-party system is a system in which three or more political parties have the capacity to gain control of government separately or in coalition Nations with a party specifically geared towards the working class will tend to have higher turnouts among that class than in countries where voters have only big tent parties, which try to appeal to all the voters, to choose from. Working class is a term used in academic Sociology and in ordinary conversation to describe depending on context and speaker those employed in specific fields or types In Politics, a big tent party or catch-all party is a Political party seeking to attract people with diverse viewpoints ^[29]

Institutional factors

Institutional factors have a significant impact on voter turnout. Rules and laws are also generally easier to change than attitudes, so much of the work done on how to improve voter turnout looks at these factors. Making voting compulsory has a direct and dramatic effect on turnout. Compulsory voting requires electors to Vote in Elections or attend a polling place on voting day Simply making voting easier through greater ballot access also increases voting. Conversely, adding barriers, such as a separate registration process, can suppress turnout. Voter registration is the requirement in some democracies for Citizens and residents to check in with some central registry specifically for the purpose of being allowed The salience of an election, the effect that a vote will have on policy, and its proportionality, how closely the result reflects the will of the people, are two structural factors that also likely have important effects on turnout.

Voter registration

The modalities of how electoral registration is conducted can also affect turnout. For example until "rolling registration" was introduced in the United Kingdom, there was no possibility of the electoral register being updated during its currency, or even amending genuine mistakes after a certain cut off date. The register was compiled in October, and would come into force the next February, and would remain valid until the next January. The electoral register would become progressively more out of date during its period of validity, as electors moved or died (also people studying or working away from home often had difficulty voting). This meant that elections taking place later in the year tended to have lower turnouts than those earlier in the year. The introduction of rolling registration where the register is updated monthly has reduced but not entirely eliminated this issue since the process of amending the register is not automatic, and some individuals do not join the electoral register until the annual October compilation process.

Another country with a highly efficient registration process is France. At the age of eighteen, all youth are automatically registered. Only new residents and citizens who have moved are responsible for bearing the costs and inconvenience of updating their registration. Similarly, in Norway all citizens and residents are included in the national register, Folkeregisteret, which is simultaneously a tax list, voter registration, and membership in the universal health system. Residents are required by law to report any change of address to Folkeregisteret within a short time after moving.

The elimination of registration as a separate bureaucratic step can result in higher voter turnout. This is reflected in statistics from the United States Bureau of Census, 1982–1983. States that have same day registration, or no registration requirements, have a higher voter turnout than the national average. At the time of that report, the four states that allowed election day registration were Minnesota, Wisconsin, Maine, and Oregon. Since then, Idaho and Maine have changed to allow same day registration. North Dakota is the only state that requires no registration. ^[30]

Compulsory voting

One of the strongest factors affecting voter turnout is whether voting is compulsory. Compulsory voting requires electors to Vote in Elections or attend a polling place on voting day In Australia, voter registration and attendance at a polling booth have been mandatory since the 1920s. These rules are strictly enforced, and the country has one of the world's highest voter turnouts. Several other countries have similar laws, generally with somewhat reduced levels of enforcement. If a Bolivian voter fails to participate in an election, the citizen may be denied withdrawal of their salary from the bank for three months. The Republic of Bolivia (República de Bolivia) named after Simón Bolívar, is a Landlocked country in central South America. ^[31]. In Mexico and Brazil, existing sanctions for non-voting are minimal or are rarely enforced. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld When enforced, compulsion has a dramatic effect on turnout. In Venezuela and the Netherlands compulsory voting has been rescinded, resulting in substantial decreases in turnout. Venezuela (ˌvɛnəˈzweɪlə) officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish República Bolivariana de Venezuela) is a country on the The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands

Salience

Mark N. Franklin argues that salience, the perceived effect that an individual vote will have on how the country is run, has a significant effect on turnout. He presents Switzerland as an example of a nation with low salience. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The nation's administration is highly decentralized, so that the federal government has limited powers. The government invariably consists of a coalition of parties, and the power wielded by a party is far more closely linked to its position relative to the coalition than to the number of votes it received. Important decisions are placed before the population in a referendum. A referendum (plural referendums or referenda) ballot question, or plebiscite (from Latin plebiscita Individual votes for the federal legislature are thus unlikely to have a significant effect on the nation, which probably explains the low average turnouts in that country. By contrast Malta, with one of the world's highest voter turnouts, has a single legislature that holds a near monopoly on political power. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Malta has a two-party system in which a small swing in votes can completely alter the executive. A two-party system is a form of Party system where two major Political parties dominate voting in nearly all Elections at every ^[32] On the other hand, countries with a two party system can experience low turnout if large numbers of potential voters perceive little real difference between the main parties. Voters' perceptions of fairness also have an important effect on salience. If voters feel that the result of an election is more likely to be determined by fraud and corruption than by the will of the people, fewer people will vote. ^[33]

Proportionality

Another institutional factor that may have an important effect is proportionality, i. e. , how closely the legislature reflects the views of the populace. A pure proportional representation system is fully proportional to the votes of the populace and a voter can be sure that he will be represented in parliament even if it is only the opposition bench; the only exception to this rule is for voters of parties that get less than a certain required percentage as a precondition to make it into parliament. Proportional representation (sometimes referred to as full representation or PR is a category of electoral formula aiming at a close match between the percentage of votes Some countries have such "fences" in place, e. g. Germany 5%. By contrast, a plurality system will almost always see districts in which one party is so dominant that there is little reason for voters of other parties to vote because votes for "losing" parties are in a sense lost. The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member

Proportional systems tend to produce multiparty governments (coalition governments). A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a Cabinet of a parliamentary Government in which several parties cooperate This may reduce salience, since the voters have little influence over which parties are included in the coalition. ^[34] For instance, after the 2005 German election, the creation of the executive not only expressed the will of the voters of the majority party but also was the result of political deal-making. German federal elections took place on September 18, 2005 to elect the members of the 16th German Bundestag, the federal parliament of Germany Although there is no guarantee, this is lessened as the parties usually state with whom they will favour a coalition after the elections.

Political scientists are divided on whether proportional representation systems increase voter turnout (which appears to depend on a number of contextual factors). ^[35] There are other systems that attempt to preserve both salience and proportionality, for example, the Mixed member proportional representation system in New Zealand (in operation since 1996), in Germany and several other countries. Mixed member proportional representation, also termed mixed-member proportional voting and commonly abbreviated to MMP, is an ' additional member ' New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island However, these tend to be complex electoral systems, and in some cases complexity appears to suppress voter turnout. ^[36] The dual system in Germany, though, seems to have had no negative impact on voter turnout.

Ease of voting

Ease of voting is a factor in rates of turnout. In the United States and most Latin American nations, voters must go through separate voter registration procedures before they are allowed to vote. Voter registration is the requirement in some democracies for Citizens and residents to check in with some central registry specifically for the purpose of being allowed This two-step process quite clearly decreases turnout. U. S. states with no, or easier, registration requirements have larger turnouts. ^[37] Other methods of improving turnout include making voting easier through more available absentee polling and improved access to polls, such as increasing the number of possible voting locations, lowering the average time voters have to spend waiting in line, or requiring companies to give workers some time off on voting day. An absentee ballot is a Vote cast by someone who is unable or unwilling to attend the official Polling station. In some areas, generally those where some polling centres are relatively inaccessible, such as India, elections often take several days. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Some countries have considered internet voting as a possible solution. Electronic voting (also known as e-voting) is a term encompassing several different types of Voting, embracing both electronic means of casting a vote and electronic In other countries, like France, voting is held on Sundays, when most voters are away from work. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Therefore, the need for time off from work as a factor in voter turnout is greatly reduced.

Voter fatigue

Main article: Voter fatigue

Voter fatigue can lower turnout. In Politics, voter fatigue is the apathy that the electorate can experience when they are required to vote too often If there are many elections in close succession, voter turnout will decrease as the public tires of participating. In low-turnout Switzerland, the average voter is invited to go to the polls an average of seven times a year; the United States has frequent elections, with two votes per year on average, if one includes all levels of government as well as primaries. A primary election ( nominating primary) also referred to simply as a primary, is an election in which voters in a Jurisdiction select candidates ^[38] Holding multiple elections at the same time can increase turnout; however, presenting voters with massive multipage ballots, as occurs in some parts of the United States, can reduce turnouts. ^[39]

Measuring turnout

Differing methods of counting voter turnout can contribute to reported differences between nations. In the United States, there is no accurate registry of exactly who is eligible to vote, since only about 70–75% of people choose to register themselves. ^[40] Thus, turnout has to be calculated based on population estimates. Some political scientists have argued that these measures do not properly account for the large number of illegal aliens, disenfranchised felons and persons who are considered 'mentally incompetent' in the United States, and that American voter turnout is higher than is normally reported. Illegal immigration refers to Immigration across National Borders in a way that violates the Immigration laws of the destination Country ^[41] Scholar Michael P. McDonald constructed an estimation of the turnout against the 'Voting Eligible Population', instead of the 'Voting Age Population'. For the American presidential elections of 2004, turnout would then actually be 60. 32%, not 55. 27%. ^[42]

Conversely, in New Zealand, registration is supposed to be universal, but historically this system has been unreliable, with a large number of eligible but unregistered citizens, creating inflated turnout figures. ^[43]

Trends of decreasing turnout

Change in voter turnout over time for five selected countries

Over the last 40 years, voter turnout has been steadily declining in the established democracies. ^[44] This trend has been most strongly felt in the United States, and has been significant in Western Europe, Japan and Latin America. It has been a matter of concern and controversy among political scientists for several decades. During this same period, other forms of political participation have also declined, such as voluntary participation in political parties and the attendance of observers at town meetings. The decline in voting has also accompanied a general decline in civic participation, such as church attendance, membership in professional, fraternal, and student societies, youth groups, and parent-teacher associations. ^[45] At the same time, some forms of participation have increased. People have become far more likely to participate in boycotts, demonstrations, and to donate to political campaigns. A boycott is a form of Consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using buying or dealing with someone or some other organization as an expression of Protest expresses relatively overt reaction to events or situations sometimes in favor though more often opposed ^[46]

Before the late 19th century, suffrage — the right to vote — was so limited in most nations that turnout figures have little relevance to today. Suffrage (from the Latin suffragium, meaning "voting tablet" and figuratively "right to vote" probably from suffrago "hough" and originally One exception was the United States, which had near universal white male suffrage by 1840. The U. S. saw a steady rise in voter turnout during the century, reaching its peak in the years after the Civil War. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Turnout declined from the 1890s until the 1930s, then increased again until 1960 before beginning its current long decline. ^[47] In Europe, voter turnouts steadily increased from the introduction of universal suffrage before peaking in the mid to late 1960s, with modest declines since then. These declines have been smaller than those in the United States, and in some European countries turnout have remained stable and even slightly increased. Globally, voter turnout has decreased by about five percentage points over the last four decades. ^[48]

Reasons for decline

Many causes have been proposed for this decline; a combination of factors is most likely. When asked why they do not vote, many people report that they have too little free time. However, over the last several decades, studies have consistently shown that the amount of leisure time has not decreased. Leisure or free time, is a period of Time spent out of work and essential domestic Activity. The perception that one is busier is common, and might be just as important as a real decrease in leisure time. Geographic mobility has increased over the last few decades. There are often barriers to voting in a district where one is a recent arrival, and a new arrival is likely to know little about the local candidate and local issues. The average age of first marriage has increased, and divorce rates have skyrocketed. Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the termination of a Marriage. Single people are generally less likely to vote. Francis Fukuyama has blamed the welfare state, arguing that the decrease in turnout has come shortly after the government became far more involved in people's lives. Yoshihiro Francis Fukuyama (born 27 October 1952) is an American Philosopher, political economist, and author This article refers specifically to the Welfare state of the United Kingdom. He argues in Trust: The Social Virtues and The Creation of Prosperity that the social capital essential to high voter turnouts is easily dissipated by government actions. Social capital is a concept in business economics, Organizational behaviour, Political science, Public health, Sociology and natural However, on an international level those states with the most extensive social programs tend to be the ones with the highest turnouts. American voter turnout is much lower than European turnout despite the generally much higher level of welfare in European countries.

In the United States, the Vietnam War and Watergate scandal may have caused voters to lose faith in their political leaders during the 1960s and 1970s. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia The Watergate scandals were a series of Political scandals during the presidency of Richard Nixon that resulted in the Indictment of several of Nixon's Many other nations saw a similar period of protest and alienation during this era, in part linked to the demographic effect of the baby boom. A baby boom is any period of greatly increased birth rate during a certain period and usually within certain geographical bounds and when the birth rate exceeds 2% of the population Trust in government and in politicians has decreased in many nations. However, the first signs of decreasing voter turnout occurred in the early 1960s, which was before the major upheavals of the late 1960s and 1970s. Robert D. Putnam argues that the collapse in civil engagement is due to the introduction of television. Robert David Putnam (born 1941 in Port Clinton Ohio) is a political scientist and professor at Harvard University. In the 1950s and 1960s television quickly became the main leisure activity in developed nations. It replaced earlier more social entertainments such as bridge clubs, church groups, and bowling leagues. Putnam argues that as people retreated within their homes and general social participation declined so to did voting. ^[49] Rosenstone and Hansen contend that the decline in turnout is the product of a change in campaigning strategies as a result of the so-called new media. Before the introduction of television, almost all of a party's resources would be directed towards intensive local campaigning and get out the vote initiatives. " Get out the vote," sometimes " GOTV," is a term used to describe two categories of political activity both aimed at increasing the number of votes cast In the modern era, these resources have been redirected to expensive media campaigns in which the potential voter is a passive participant. ^[50] During the same period, negative campaigning has become ubiquitous in the United States and elsewhere. Negative campaigning is trying to win an advantage by referring to negative aspects of an opponent or of a policy rather than emphasizing one's own positive attributes or preferred It has been argued that attack ads and smear campaigns give voters a negative impression of the entire political process. In Political campaigns an attack ad is an Advertisement whose Message is meant as an attack against another candidate or Political party. The evidence for this is mixed: elections involving highly unpopular incumbents generally have high turnout; some studies have found that mudslinging and character attacks reduce turnout, but that substantive attacks on a party's record can increase it. ^[51]

The decline in voter turnout is almost wholly concentrated among young people. Those who began voting prior to 1960 maintain the same high turnout rates of that era. For each subsequent generation, starting with the one that came of age in the 1960s, turnout has steadily declined. Recent programs to increase the rates of voting among young people—such as MTV's "Rock the Vote" and the "Vote or Die" initiatives in the United States—may have marginally increased turnouts of those between the ages of 18 and 25 to vote. Rock the Vote is a 501(c(3 Non-profit organization founded in Los Angeles in 1990 by Jeff Ayeroff for the purposes of political advocacy Citizen Change is a political service group founded by music mogul P ^[52] A number of governments and electoral commissions have also launched efforts to boost turnout. For instance Elections Canada has launched mass media campaigns to encourage voting prior to elections, as have bodies in Taiwan and the United Kingdom. Elections Canada is an independent non-partisan agency reporting directly to the Parliament of Canada.

Ineligibility

Much of the above analysis is predicated on voter turnout as measured as a percentage of the voting-age population. In a 2001 article in the American Political Science Review, Michael McDonald and Samuel Popkin argued, that at least in the United States, voter turnout since 1972 has not actually declined when calculated for those eligible to vote, what they term the voting-eligible population. The American Political Science Review ( APSR) is the flagship publication of the American Political Science Association and the most prestigious ^[53] In 1972, noncitizens and ineligible felons (depending on state law) constituted about 2% of the voting-age population. By 2004, ineligible voters constituted nearly 10%. Ineligible voters are not evenly distributed across the country - 20% of California's voting-age population is ineligible to vote - which confounds comparisons of states. Furthermore, they argue that an examination of the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey shows that turnout is low but not declining among the youth, when the high youth turnout of 1972 (the first year 18–20 year olds were eligible to vote in most states) is removed from the trendline. a

Notes

References

• Franklin, Mark N. "Electoral Engineering and Cross National Turnout Differences. " British Journal of Political Science. 1999
• Kanazawa, Satoshi. "A Possible Solution to the Paradox of Voter Turnout. " The Journal of Politics.
• Lijphart, Arend. "Unequal Participation: Democracy's Unresolved Dilemma. " American Political Science Review. vol. 91 (March 1997): 1–14. p. 12
• McDonald, Michael and Samuel Popkin. "The Myth of the Vanishing Voter. " American Political Science Review. 2001.
• Niemi, Richard G. and Herbert F. Weisberg. eds. Controversies in Voting Behavior. Washington, D. C: CQ Press, 2001.
• Norris, Pippa. Elections and Voting Behaviour: New Challenges, New Perspectives. Aldershot: Ashgate, Dartmouth, 1998.
• Rose, Richard, ed. Electoral Participation: A Comparative Analysis. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, 1980.
• Wolfinger, Raymond E. and Steven J. Rosenstone. 1980. Who Votes? New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
• Wolfinger, R. , Glass, D. , Squire, P. (1990). Predictors of electoral turnout:an international comparison. Policy Studies Review, 9(3), p551–574, 24p
• Highton, B. (1997, May). Easy registration and voter turnout. The Journal of Politics, 59(2), pp. 565–575.

External links

• Voter Turnout in Canada | Mapleleafweb.com
• IDEA: Voter Turnout
• Fairvote.org: Voter Turnout
• Current national and state voter turnout statistics for those eligible to vote
• Power Commission Independent inquiry into Britain's democracy
• A New Nation Votes: American Elections Returns 1787–1825
• Electionguide: Turnout for Latest Elections