> most people can barely be counted on to show up to vote One reason so few people vote is voting systems that make some voters very much more influential than

> most people can barely be counted on to show up to vote One reason so few people vote is voting systems that make some voters very much more influential than others. Political parties realise this and target the most influential voters. Many of the least powerful voters correctly perceive either that their votes are less influential than other votes or that the political parties are neglecting them. These voting systems are susceptible to gerrymandering. Such systems are used for the main legislative elections in the US, Canada, France, the UK and Australia. Even if not purposely gerrymandered, these systems almost always represent voters highly unequally. Australia has papered over the cracks by making voting compulsory. In the dozens of European countries other than France and the UK, proportional voting systems are used, giving each vote approximately equal weight and therefore resisting gerrymandering. These systems are associated with an increase in turnout of 5% or more.