How Can We Help Voter Turnout?
10 May 2012
Last week the local election followed recent trends, with a low turnout of about 32%. Rain during the day didn’t help, but it’s debatable as to which of a number of factors has the biggest impact. One Dutch study reported last week that - to a mathematically precise point - every inch of rain means a 1% reduction in turnout, and a 10 degrees increase in temperature means a 1% increase in turnout. I’m not entirely convinced. Anyway, it doesn’t explain why 68% of people didn’t vote.
We know that in the 2010 general election, only 44% of those aged 18-24 voted, whereas 76% of those over 65 voted. There’s only a 50/50 chance of first-time voters actually using their vote. So an increasing number of people who are inclined to vote in a particular election don't know how to do it. During these local elections I had several doorstep discussions with people who told me “I've never voted - how do I go about it?”
How Can We Help Voter Turnout?
10 May 2012
Last week the local election followed recent trends, with a low turnout of about 32%. Rain during the day didn’t help, but it’s debatable as to which of a number of factors has the biggest impact. One Dutch study reported last week that - to a mathematically precise point - every inch of rain means a 1% reduction in turnout, and a 10 degrees increase in temperature means a 1% increase in turnout. I’m not entirely convinced. Anyway, it doesn’t explain why 68% of people didn’t vote.
We know that in the 2010 general election, only 44% of those aged 18-24 voted, whereas 76% of those over 65 voted. There’s only a 50/50 chance of first-time voters actually using their vote. So an increasing number of people who are inclined to vote in a particular election don't know how to do it. During these local elections I had several doorstep discussions with people who told me “I've never voted - how do I go about it?”
Why Local Elections Are So Important
03 May 2012
This was meant to be a quiet week in Parliament because of the local elections, with most MPs out helping their local candidates. That’s as it should be – you can’t have democracy without political parties who set out their stall and seek the votes of local people. When places like Syria are still fighting for basic democratic rights, it’s all the more galling when some people say “I can’t be bothered” instead of comparing the policies set out by different parties and looking at their record in order to decide how to vote. Local manifestos aren’t the product of some remote machine – they are the product of intense debate by local people who give up their time voluntarily because they care deeply about the sort of society we live in.