The more people are involved in their neighborhoods and their blocks, the more interaction they will have with their elected officials, and the more those officials will pay attention to them. Rather than browbeat them at election time every year, we need to encourage people to be engaged politically and civically year-round. But so many people still don’t feel the same sense of connectedness that we do-and it’s not their fault. It’s not a bad bubble: We are politically active, know our rights and representatives, are civically engaged-heck, we are writing for and reading a niche publication specifically about these things. The day after is when it really begins.Īs is probably the case with many of you, we both live in a high-information bubble. These are all reasons why the work doesn’t end on Election Day. It’s hard to believe that your vote matters when in some races, it actually doesn’t. This year alone, over 50 percent of local candidates ran unopposed. Voting is also discouraging if the race isn’t competitive. restrictions, inflexible work and school schedules that prevent citizens from having time to vote, lack of civics education in schools, the sudden closing (or changing) of polling places, and understaffed and under-trained election boards all contribute to making it hard for some -particularly Black and brown citizens-to be heard in the polls. We also know that voter suppression is wrongfully swept under the term voter apathy. Here’s why it matters-and some ways we can prevent this last minute scramble in the future The city needs to recruit another 4,000 people to work the polls to ensure voting goes smoothly on November 3. They have serious doubts about the impact of their own votes: 38 percent of non-voters are not confident that elections represent the people’s will. It requires many trusts, faith in new machines, confidence in the postal system and assurance that votes will count.Īccording to the Knight Foundation’s 100 Million Project, many non-voters suffer from a lack of faith in the electoral system. Understanding how to vote has also become overwhelming, again by design, even though technically, it’s now easier than ever. Knowing how the president’s orders can and will directly affect your day-to-day is often overlooked-even in the middle of a global pandemic and economic crisis, amongst other things. Understanding the difference between a state representative and a state senator is confusing, especially when it’s never been taught to you. Why should we vote? What difference will it make? There is little institutional effort to reach out to people who are deemed unlikely to vote, or even understand what impediments and roadblocks are in their way. It’s a term that ignores 200-plus years of voter suppression, and that blames individuals rather than institutions, politicians and an electoral process that makes it hard and-for some-seemingly meaningless to vote.Īs we head into what has become an increasingly loud and noisy election season, we have to ask, “who are they talking to/about?” Messages range from, “vote like your life depends on it,” “this is the most important election of our lifetime,” to “settle” for one candidate over another to the laughable “any competent person for 2020.” They have been gaslighting us about this for decades. Politicians, activists, the media tell us these people didn’t vote because of voter apathy. Was it that they didn’t care or was it that they weren’t given a reason to? While political parties and organizations are pushing people to vote, rarely do we see a broken-down explanation of why. Nearly 100 million eligible voters did not cast a ballot in 2016. Despite the election season rush to win over undecided voters in swing states like Pennsylvania, the truth is that the most influential block of people in our last presidential election was neither Democrat nor Republican.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |