4 ms·

If combined with automatic registration, it helps fight the incentive for political candidates to suppress voting in districts or among demographics they know w

by panic 9y ago

If combined with automatic registration, it helps fight the incentive for political candidates to suppress voting in districts or among demographics they know will hurt their chances of winning. It also makes elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences, instead of just the subset of people who are motivated to vote and able to get to a polling place.

iak8god 9y ago
> It also makes elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences The main preference this may reveal is a preference to avoid being fined.
notatoad 9y ago
Yes! automatic registration seems like an incredibly important step. Here in Canada i just show up to vote, and they let me. I don't have to jump through any hoops to be allowed to vote, and i can't understand why any country would have it any other way. (other than the obvious: malicious voter suppression)
brightball 9y ago
But it doesn't make elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences. Some people's preference is literally "I don't care" Other people may have a preference on a specific issue that favors a single candidate while other issues better favor another candidate. It also reduces actually researching candidates to a waste of time. If I take the time to carefully research 5 candidates and their stance on all of the issues, weigh them carefully, maybe even attend a campaign event to get clarification...and then another guy walks up without having any idea what he's voting for that votes for the other guy...his vote counts exactly the same except that he's only there because he has to be.
- panic 9y ago
  > It also reduces actually researching candidates to a waste of time. If I take the time to carefully research 5 candidates and their stance on all of the issues, weigh them carefully, maybe even attend a campaign event to get clarification...and then another guy walks up without having any idea what he's voting for that votes for the other guy...his vote counts exactly the same except that he's only there because he has to be. I mean, that's democracy. The point isn't a perfect system where everyone is making completely informed decisions. The goal is to keep public officials accountable to the people and their interests, however uninformed.
  - brightball 9y ago
    Is the point forcing people to participate in something against their will? Diluting the voter pool so much that the people paying enough attention to hold a candidate accountable can't actually have an impact?
maxlybbert 9y ago
> It also makes elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences I happen to know that Brazil has mandatory voting for most people (it’s optional for 16 and 17 year olds, and for anyone older than 65). They allow people to vote for nobody, and to vote for “whoever wins.” Since Brazil requires an actual majority vote, voting for “the winner” amounts to “I want to avoid a run-off.”

by panic 9y ago

iak8god 9y ago

> It also makes elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences The main preference this may reveal is a preference to avoid being fined.

notatoad 9y ago

Yes! automatic registration seems like an incredibly important step. Here in Canada i just show up to vote, and they let me. I don't have to jump through any hoops to be allowed to vote, and i can't understand why any country would have it any other way. (other than the obvious: malicious voter suppression)

brightball 9y ago

But it doesn't make elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences. Some people's preference is literally "I don't care" Other people may have a preference on a specific issue that favors a single candidate while other issues better favor another candidate. It also reduces actually researching candidates to a waste of time. If I take the time to carefully research 5 candidates and their stance on all of the issues, weigh them carefully, maybe even attend a campaign event to get clarification...and then another guy walks up without having any idea what he's voting for that votes for the other guy...his vote counts exactly the same except that he's only there because he has to be.

panic 9y ago
> It also reduces actually researching candidates to a waste of time. If I take the time to carefully research 5 candidates and their stance on all of the issues, weigh them carefully, maybe even attend a campaign event to get clarification...and then another guy walks up without having any idea what he's voting for that votes for the other guy...his vote counts exactly the same except that he's only there because he has to be. I mean, that's democracy. The point isn't a perfect system where everyone is making completely informed decisions. The goal is to keep public officials accountable to the people and their interests, however uninformed.
- brightball 9y ago
  Is the point forcing people to participate in something against their will? Diluting the voter pool so much that the people paying enough attention to hold a candidate accountable can't actually have an impact?

maxlybbert 9y ago

> It also makes elections a more accurate reflection of everyone's preferences I happen to know that Brazil has mandatory voting for most people (it’s optional for 16 and 17 year olds, and for anyone older than 65). They allow people to vote for nobody, and to vote for “whoever wins.” Since Brazil requires an actual majority vote, voting for “the winner” amounts to “I want to avoid a run-off.”