Compulsory voting debates whether citizens should be required to vote or have the option to abstain. Supporters argue it increases voter turnout and political participation, especially among marginalized groups. However, others counter that mandatory voting infringes on individual freedom and could increase uninformed votes. Studies also show compulsory voting may decrease rates of uninformed voters over time as voting becomes more of a civic duty. Countries that have implemented compulsory voting, like Australia, have experienced both higher voter turnout but also more debate around the trade-off with individual liberties.

1. Compulsory Voting Dbq
The debate over compulsory vs. non–compulsory voting is a complex subject matter to say the least,
that has sparked much controversy in recent times with almost all strongly in favor of one side of
the argument and or the other. This highly polarized debate has sparked in popularity in recent
times because of a quote by former president Barak Obama in which he said that "It would be
transformative if everybody voted". It is believed that if everyone voted that could and was eligible
then the domination of hard core partisans within the political system would be in part quelled as the
candidates went where the votes are, which would be away from the extremes. Moreover some
studies show that mandatory voting decreases the rates of uninformed voters within an area as
voting becomes more of a civic duty than right. While the institution of compulsory voting would
have a short term effect of increasing the rate of uninformed voters,...show more content...
Much like a draft persuades those involved in it to learn about what they are fighting for
compulsory voting would lead to many people becoming more passionate about the subjects that
they are voting on and as such learn about these topics. If the state compels their citizens to vote
then a lot of the burden shifts from the individual that plans to vote moreso to the state. This would
lead to the area having to introduce new and quicker ways to vote such as one day voter
registration, moving voting locations, and locations to vote in everyday locations. Mandatory voting
would also allow or at least comple lower income, younger, and non–white voters to take part in the
system whose voices would usually not be heard as much as the general populace. A better informed
and more diverse electorate are more prone to participate in the political
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2. Essay about Compulsory Voting
Industrial Countries all over the world have seen a steady decline in voter participation; Great
Britain is a great example of this. The country has witness turnout in elections falling slowly as time
pass. However, the election of 2001 dropped the country from their average of 76% voter turnout to
just a 59.4% turnout. Comparatively, Australia, a former colony of Britain, has enjoyed high and
steady voter participation since 1924 because of the implementation of compulsory voting. This
system has proven to be not only effective in bring voters to the polls, but also effective in improving
Australia's democracy. By evaluating these two countries with similar political structure; one can see
the difference in compulsory voting turnouts...show more content...
However, it is not constitutionally recognized as a legal entity, therefore, giving its decisions no
legal force. The main parties of Australia are: the Labour Party, Liberal Party, National Party, and
the Australian Democrats; these parties are voted in through a preferential system of voting
("Australia's Political Structure," 2011). All citizens over the age of 18 are required to vote for
these parties because of compulsory voting (adopted in 1924). Australia followed many other
democracies on there decision to implement compulsory voting during the 1920s. However, the
country unusually added mandatory voting without other previsions (Birch, 2009). Australia was
able to do so because of several strong factors supporting the measure.
The left (the Labour Party) had already used a form of social compulsion through trade unions
getting their supporters to the polls. Bring in compulsory voting would rectify this imbalance
between the left and the right votes (Birch, 2009). Furthermore, voters would no longer be in a
position to demand transportation to the polls producing lower party cost. Several other factors
include: raising turnout, greatening the legitimacy of government, enhancing the public education
on politics, and the fact that voting is considered a duty–not only a right (Birch, 2009). Since the
adoption the system has widely been supported. At the highest point of support peaked at 73% in
favor of compulsory voting
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3. Compulsory Voting
English Composition 2 SUNY Empire State College Final paper 16.5.2013 Compulsory Voting 1
Topic of the paper Democracy is built on freedom to vote and have your political say, but the
majority of people in the world's 'greatest' democracies never vote at all. Is compulsory participation
in the political system the answer? Investigate countries which make voting compulsory – weigh the
advantages and disadvantages – then argue for or against this policy. Abstract Compulsory voting
solves the problem of low political participation during elections; therefore, winning politicians and
political parties cannot be considered non–legitimate in mandatory voting. On the other hand,
mandatory voting has more...show more content...
Mandatory democracy can raise political interest among people. When people who are not
interested in politics are forced to vote, some of them start to feel responsible for results of
elections. They begin to watch political news, read journals and articles to have sufficient
knowledge about politics in general and politicians, who they vote for or against. As Jake Keith and
Guang–Zhen Sun describe in their article, when people are force to vote, it increases their interest
about politics, so compulsory voting raises the value of individual votes (64). Compulsory voting
can achieve higher efficiency in politics, especially on local level. As mandatory voting reaches
higher voting turnout, more groups sensitive about specific topic are included in the voting. This
fact can compel local politicians to care about small, but very important issues for some people.
Such issues are for example public transportation, water supply, sanitation etc. ("'Compulsory Voting
Good for Democracy"). Disadvantages of compulsory voting The most common argument against
mandatory voting is individual freedom. Countries using compulsory voting force people to vote,
but it can definitely be considered as a step against freedom of individuals. Even Lijphart, who is
known as a propagator of compulsory voting, argues that mandatory voting has a very strong
disadvantage, which is individual freedom. In case of
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