Voting should be mandatory
A handful of democracies require citizens to vote, while most leave it optional. Should turning out be a legal duty? The arguments follow.
Arguments for
- Compulsory voting produces near-universal turnout, so results reflect the whole population rather than the most motivated few.
- It pushes parties to appeal to the broad centre instead of only mobilising their base.
- Treating voting as a civic duty, like jury service or taxes, strengthens democratic legitimacy.
- High, even turnout reduces the impact of voter-suppression tactics aimed at specific groups.
Arguments against
- Forcing participation infringes the freedom not to vote, which is itself a legitimate political choice.
- Compelled, uninformed voters may pick at random or spoil ballots, adding noise rather than signal.
- Penalising non-voters can fall hardest on the marginalised who face the most barriers to the polls.
- The better fix is making voting easy and worthwhile, not punishing people for abstaining.
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