Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Time to make voting mandatory in BC provincial elections - like in Australia

Bill Tieleman’s 24 Hours Column

Tuesday May 12, 2009

Time to invoke compulsory voting

By BILL TIELEMAN

We are comfortable with compulsion in other walks of life, such as jury duty or the requirement to educate our children. Surely our democracy is valuable enough to deserve a similar level of backing.

- U.K. author Ben Rogers

Today is provincial election day - and far too many citizens will not exercise their democratic right to vote.

So I believe it's time B.C. and Canada moved to compulsory voting laws, where all voters are required to vote or face a penalty for not doing so.

It may surprise you to learn that 30 countries representing 10 per cent of the democratic world have compulsory or mandatory voting laws.

Of those, 19 enforce those laws by fining or penalizing any eligible voter who refuses to cast a ballot.

Australia is perhaps the most prominent country with compulsory voting and at a time when voter participation is declining around the world no matter what type of electoral system is used, more than 90 per cent of Australians have voted in every national election since the law was introduced in 1924.

Compare that to B.C. where voter turnout was just 58 per cent in 2005 and fell from a high of 78 per cent in 1983 to just 55 per cent in 2001. From the 1920s through 1980s voter participation was regularly in the high 60 per cent to low 70 per cent range.

Australia is far from alone in making voting compulsory. Other countries with similar laws that are enforced include Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Greece, Luxembourg, Mexico, Peru and Turkey.

And Italy, the Netherlands, Bolivia, Costa Rica and Thailand are among other nations that have mandatory voting laws but do not enforce them.

So what are the arguments in favour of demanding citizens exercise their vote?

First - mandatory voting forces every party to consider the needs of all voters in forming policies, reducing a focus on ideological, regional or other influences. All parties have to appeal to all voters, not just some.

Second - no government can show favour to special interests or only ridings it holds without fear of losing the following election.

Third - democracy is a privilege many have died for - it's not to be taken lightly.

Fourth - election results would reflect the views of the entire population, not just the 50 to 60 per cent who currently vote.

With compulsory voting there are exceptions for those who for religious reasons do not vote or those who cannot vote.

And spoiling your ballot in protest against all parties is still completely legal and not penalized.

It's time that all of us vote, to protect our democratic rights.

It's time for compulsory voting.

NOTE: I will be commenting on the election results Tuesday night from 7 p.m. on CKNW AM 980 with host Sean Leslie, Michael Smyth and Christy Clark.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

So if people don't like the system they should be forced to vote anyway?

Ironic that this is coming from someone who loves the system and has worked tirelessly to stop it from being changed.

People not voting is a symptom of a sick democracy. Fining people for not voting won't fix that.

Anonymous said...

HOW ABOUT NATIONALLY AS WELL.?

Bill Tieleman said...

Re-read my first few paragraphs - I said "BC and Canada".

DPL said...

I have absolutly no problem with a system that says we must vote, having went to much effort to vote in or outside the country when on detachments. But I have a real bone to pick with Elections BC for the sloppy job they did in picking a voting place for the folks in my new riding. A member of my family went over to vote first thing, phoned me back to say there was a small note on the outside wall indicating a entrance for disabled folk. Near the back of the building. (I drive a walker as I recover from a back operation)so off I went and found that, yes there is a door and a ramp, and it was not open nor could it be opened from the outside. Not impressed.

As I was heading toward the main entrance which has a number of steps I ran into about six folks in suits carrying clip boards,on the way out of the parking lot, who when asked admitted they were from Elections BC. I pointed out that the so called access couldn't work, the ramp had lost a bunch of antiskid so do something. They did everything but shrug. The option was I would be phoneing any one I could to insult their choice of a site. One of the guys finally went back into the building and got somebody to open the door, and in I went. On the way out I saw three different people trying the main entrance. One was on a scooter, and two were with walkers, The one woman had a total back brace so I directed them to the now open back door. Nobody from the staff offered to assist any of them. Suddenly the door was partially closed again. Seems somebody inside was cold. The story was repeated to the local radio station and my candidates office so the folks who were disabled heading for the polls would gain access. No wonder folks simply don't vote, and we all lose. A call to Elections BC was a repeat of above. The lady was so concerned she never did get around to asking me what polling booth I was talking about. She had it all figured out, as soon as the guy gets off the phone we can forget it. I told her my name, address and phone number in case anyone decided to call back. I won't be holding my breath. You and I pay those clowns to provide safe accessable poll places for those who have a short term or long term disability. To see an old woman trying to get a scooter up a number of stairs, yet nobody had the brains to point her in the right direction. What sort of people are we hiring? "Inept" comes to mind. I do wonder how many folk saw the lack of an entrance and simply went home? Only in BC , the best place on earth for some, but not the best for a lot of others. But to be fair, one guy asked if I could get down the ramp with no assistance .

I found out by using the polling notice and my Newspaper bill I was able to vote. What a bunch.

Anonymous said...

Bill... I have no problem with mandatory voting...people need to be responsible for their democracy but I do believe that in return for mandatory voting ,voters be presented with a "None Of The Above" option on their ballot..

G.

BC Mary said...

.
Just a mention to anyone feeling locked out or left out, there's a Live-Blogging tonight on THE BATTLE FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA starting at 7:30 tonight ...

http://www.coveritlive.com/index.php?option=com_altcaster&task=siteviewaltcast&altcast_code=61d235892e


Many hopes and prayers are with Mel Lehan in the riding of Vancouver-Point Grey who just might "throw the bum out" tonight.

.

Anonymous said...

Vancouver-Fraserview was lost to the reactionary savages because New Canadians did not participate.

I don't buy the argument that people should be free to chose; it is a purpose of government to punish apathy. I am all for compulsory voting.

Actually, I lived in Australia for almost a year. I didn't detect widespread resentment of the law.

PASHAPOTTE said...

EVERY ELECTION THIS TIRED DONKEY GETS TROTTED OUT, to justify folks
having to vote over stupid issues
that aren't often kept, so
be satisfied if 48% of the eligible
voters turn out to show their approval for whom ever.
PLACE SOME REAL ISSUES ON THE TABLE
DURING AN ELECTION MAYBE SOME OF US
WHO NOLONGER CARE TO ENDORSE EITHER
LIAR< LYING PARTY might show a renewed interest.
And since when are we trying to
install COMMUNISM or a FASCIST DICTATORSHIP where the VOTE is
FREE.
NOTICE THE WORD, FREE, we live in
a free SOCIETY where we should
have the freedom to VOTE or to ABSTAIN even if it's in record
numbers year to year.
LET THIS DEAD DONKEY LIE, for even
if they enacted an enforced VOTE
I would simply SCRATCH MINE for the
above listed reasons.
SHALOM

Anonymous said...

WHY TROT OUT THIS DEAD DONKEY
EVERY TIME AN ELECTION IS DONE?
WHAT DOES IT MATTER IF THEY WIN
BY 38% OR 78% OF THE TOTAL ELIGIBLE
VOTERS?
IT DOESN'T SO LONG AS THEY ARE
ALL @THE END CORRUPT, FOR THEY
ALL LIE TO GAIN THEIR PLACE AT THE
TAXPAYER SWILL TROUGH.
WHO GOT TO VOTE WHETHER OR NOT THEY GAVE THEMSELVES A PICK FAT RAISE WITHOUT OUR OKAY?
AND SADLY THE MEDIA REALLY NEVER
RAISED ANY ISSUES FOR THEY WERE
PAID OFF LIKE THOSE DONKEYS.
BELIEVE THIS, WHEN SOMETHING THAT
REALLY MATTERS TO US JOE PUBLIC
WE SHALL VOTE, BUT OVER STUPID THINGS THAT HAVE BECOME THE MAINSTAY OF TODAYS ELECTIONS, PLEASE DON'T WASTE OUT TIME, BE HAPPY THAT @ LEAST 50% SHOW UP TO
DO WHAT SO MANY CLONES DRONE AS
BEING SOME SACRED DUTY.
give us more selection TO PICK FROM
AND NOT THE SAME CORRUPT PARTIES WE
TODAY HAVE TO PICK FROM.
AND SINCE WHEN WOULD YOU ENDORSE
A dictatorship, WHERE WE ARE FORCED
LIKE CATTLE THROUGH A SLAUGHTER GATE, FOR OUR SIMPLE EXMARK?
even IF IT WERE A compulsory, forced vote, I WOULD STILL SCRATCH
MINE TO MAKE MY MARK THAT I HATE WHAT TODAYS DEMOCRACY HAS BECOME,
FOR A BUNCH OF WHINERS AND PIGGY
DINERS.
SHALOM

PASHA said...

Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval.didn"t see this
WELL THERE WE HAVE IT, so much for
free expression OR FREE press

Bill Tieleman said...

Just a reminder that calling me a "fascist" - or anyone else - will not be tolerated here.

Make your point with facts, not outrageous insults, or go somewhere else, loser.

Anonymous said...

Well, let's see....

People with lower incomes are less likely to vote. People with lower incomes are more likely to vote NDP.

Ergo forcing everyone to vote will help the NDP.

Wow, Bill. You could save democracy AND help the NDP. You're a genius! No wonder they give you unelected insiders all the power!

Jak King said...

Once again the socialist vanguard of the Nanny State wants to tells us how we should live our lives. There is absolutely no reason why people should be FORCED to vote. Not voting is protected political thought under the Bill of Rights and Freedoms, surely. Saying that I will still have the right to spoil my ballot is exactly the same as me telling you that you MUST buy a blueberry muffin, but you are not obliged to eat it.