...defines the American spirit. In every election, people must make crucial decisions based upon their limited knowledge. Those decisions affect not only the country in which they're made, but the entire world. Aside from the choices of candidates, citizens make one other choice: whether or not they should vote. Certain citizens feel that they shouldn't participate in the voting process. Whether that is a deliberate decision made in order to not skew the vote with an underdeveloped opinion, or a passive resolution based on apathetic feelings toward politics, voluntary voting is crucial to democracy. Making voting mandatory would revoke freedom from those who don't wish to have a say, and water down the power of democracy....
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...Should Americans be Required to Vote? Why would a country that revels in the fact that they have more freedoms than most countries obligate their citizens to vote? It is clear that american citizens should not be forced to vote. People feel that if they were given a day off work on election day, they would be able to vote. Another way is if citizens were able to vote early. Should the eligible citizens of america be obligated to vote? There are three reasons why Americans should not be obligated to vote. First of all ignorant voters are dangerous,the fact that citizens do not participate as much shouldn't be masked, and the higher level education people receive the higher percentage of them will vote. One reason why Americans should not be required to vote is that ignorant voters are dangerous. Evidence supporting this reason is “must you vote?” new York times by randy Cohen. A quote that I found on this site explaining the dangers of ignorant voters is, “It is irresponsible to encourage the unaware to put their ignorance into action so aimlessly...you might as well urge the unpracticed to Rollerblade and use power tools simultaneously. At least they'd injure only themselves.” this evidence helps explain why Americans should not be required to vote because when the ignorant vote their vote could possibly be the vote that takes a...
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...Voting. This is one of the great rights, that we as Americans have. We have the freedom to vote and the freedom to choose whether we want too or not. However, just because voting matters it does not mean that everyone does it. Studies show that barely 60% of voters participate in the elections that take place here. So why don’t voters vote? I mean we fought for the right to vote so why don’t we take that privilege? The question that face americans today is Should americans be required be to vote? I think Americans should be required to vote because Many nations have good voter turn out, we could have better informed voters and we could have higher voter turnout. The first reason i think americans should be required to vote is because many nations have good voter turnout. In Document A it shows that at least 40 countries have required voting. This is...
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...their state requires tests that they are incapable of passing, these people are being unfairly represented in our government. Although our constitution provides the framework for our voting system, it leaves the right to the states to establish who is able to vote and who isn’t. In order to prevent this inequality in the voting process, states should be required to share the same voting requirements and it should be easier for immigrants to gain their citizenship so they as well can have a say in government. The American constitution established the framework of the voting system that we use today in our modern society. Voting first started in 1776, during the time of the colonies and the revolution and only white male Protestants were able to vote. At the time when George Washington was elected President, only 6% of the current population was eligible to vote, so voting was very restricted. In 1866 the Civil Rights Act granted citizenship to all American born people. However, it did not mention that all citizens had the right to vote, it left that to be decided by the states. While some states have easier voting restrictions, others have stricter ones that make it harder for certain groups of people to gain the right to vote. However, currently all states share the common requirements that...
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...campaign moves, as well as candidates modify their entire approach to receive the victory vote. How they perform in this college is the single most important action of their career; a victory secures the presidency, a loss equates to nothing more than a superficial nod in a history textbook. What comes the drama and perils of a presidential election rests within the process of the Electoral College. A candidate plans, strategizes, and executes his or her entire campaign plan of action around the effect of the Electoral College (Stromberg, How the Electoral College Influences…). However, all is not...
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...United States. There are so many organizations and movements whose main goal is to get people out to vote in this year’s election and I do not support them. I feel as though voting is a waste of time especially in this election, where both candidates are corrupt and unfit. Also, I feel as though the electoral college should be abolished. Voting is a waste of time because it is the electoral college who ultimately chooses the president and not the American people.Many people don’t understand the logistics of the electoral college and just how much they impact the lives of Americans. In...
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...I agree that requiring Americans to vote is un-American. If one does not want to vote they should not have to. The first reason on why I agree would be a democracy cant be strong if its citizenship is weak. The second reason on why I agree is if some regularly vote while others don’t, officials are likely to give greater weight to participants. And lastly my third reason on why I agree is that low voter turnouts pushes American politics toward increased polarization. The first reason why I agree would be a democracy can’t be strong if its citizenship is weak. According to the article “Telling Americans to Vote, or Else” By William A. Galston “American citizenship is attenuated — strong on rights, weak on responsibilities.” Citizenship is what...
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...Should the Electoral College be abolished? Most Americans know very little about the Electoral College, unless it’s an election year in which an increased number of Americans gain a general understanding of the system. Among Americans who have an understanding of the Electoral College system there is often debate as to whether or not America should still use the system that dates back to our founding fathers. These debates unearth topics such as how the Electoral College is the best compromise for our country, or how the system is outdated and was only created so the founding fathers could perpetuate slavery. Although the Electoral College is not a perfect system, it should not be abolished. What is the Electoral College? “The Electoral College...
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...spoken name to be eligible to vote. This results in abuses which harm the election process. The US government should implement voter ID laws in order to protect voter integrity and ensure accurate...
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...The American Electoral College purpose is to select a presidential candidate. The most popular vote does not technically elect the president but the electors in the Electoral College vote for their respective states wishes. Electoral College elects the President and the Vice President of America. The Electoral College is the electors from each State and it comes together every four years to select the President and the Vice President of America. It is an American tradition and it is constitutionally required to exist, so therefore it should remain in place. Electoral College puts focus on swing states and allows them to get massive attention by the presidential candidates. Less populated states votes count, bigger states like NY, TX, and CA...
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...After the Civil War, the United States was in ruins. The Southern society and economy were destroyed, and the freed slaves were without money, homes, and jobs. The government was split in two and did not know how to move forward. The changes made, or lack thereof, from the end of the Civil War until around 1877 are accumulated into what is known as the Reconstruction Era. President Lincoln’s Reconstruction plan thought that the federal government should be fairly lenient towards the southern states, and thought that only 10% of the state’s population should be loyal to the union. When Lincoln was assassinated on April 11, 1865, his vice president Andrew Johnson took over. Johnson’s plan was similar to Lincoln’s, but he wanted to be harsh on...
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...permanent residents including about 480,000 who are admitted to reunite with their families; about 140,000 are admitted to fill jobs for which the U.S. Department of Labor has determined no American workers are available; about 110,000 refugees who have proven their claims of political or religious persecution in their homelands; and about 55,000 who are admitted under a "diversity" lottery, begun in 1990, that mainly benefits young European and African immigrants” (American Civil Liberties Union). Opponents of legal immigration are fearful despite the strict selection process of foreign-born persons. Anti-immigrant groups argue that immigrants hinder the American economy. They contend that these individuals steal jobs away from native-born Americans thereby unemployment rates increase. Critics claim that they pay for the financial benefits that immigrants receive. There is a belief that immigrants take advantage of government resources that are meant for...
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...In 1965, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act which bans racial discrimination by federal workers. Before the Civil War, free blacks were not given the right to vote. Southern states were the main issue because they created a majority of the issues due to their stubborn belief that African Americans should not be given rights. In result, African Americans were denied the right to vote in most parts of the south. That is when the Voting Rights Act was enacted, and removed barriers to voting. This required change in locale’s electoral system. In order for this Act to be successful, it required change in voting procedures. There still lies a problem here, even though congress enacted this law, citizens in the South continued to give African...
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...Matt Hamilton American Government PS1350 August 10, 2015 Mr. R. S. MCCULOUGH “American Voters” In the United States the voter turnout during elections has decreased over the last fifteen years. In 2012 the Bipartisan Policy Center compared voter turnout rates for the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, The BPC said “Despite an increase of over 8 million citizens in the eligible population, turnout declined from 131 million voters in 2008 to an estimated 126 million voters in 2012 when all ballots are tallied. Some 93 million eligible citizens did not vote.” Many Americans feel like their vote doesn’t count anyway, mainly citizens who are already disadvantaged. Australian professor of Politics Lisa Hill states in her article What We’ve Seen in Australia With Mandatory Voting that, “Places with mandatory voting also have less wealth inequality, lower levels of political corruption and higher levels of satisfaction with the way democracy is working than voluntary systems.” Critics say that implementing mandatory voting is against the constitution, and what we value the most, freedom. Furthermore, Hill states “ Is being required to vote a violation of autonomy? Sure, but so is mandatory taxation, jury duty and the requirement to educate our children. Yet these are all good ideas. Voting should be mandatory because as American citizens we live in a democratic society where everyone should have an opinion. Although, Americans value independence and the free-will to do whatever...
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...The right to vote is one of the most significant rights we have as American citizens. A right of this importance should be treated with the utmost respect and admiration. Due to it being to so essential for the country to get along smoothly, the right to vote should not be lowered. The current voting age is adequate although changes can be made. Well informed, mature voters are the key to making good choices when election time comes around. Lowering the voting age would create problems that America does not need to deal with. The main reason the voting age should not be lowered is there is an excessive amount of people below the age of 18 are not responsible enough to vote. Voting should be taken very seriously, since it decides who holds office in America. A great deal of young students do not grasp the gravity of casting a ballot. Is every single high school student fit to vote? Of course not. Can they become adequate voters as time passes? Absolutely. Trusting 16 year old trouble makers and class clowns to make a mature decision is not a great idea. These same kids, however, may grow up to be productive, mature citizens. Any age less than 18 is simply too low to allow to vote....
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