In the UK, voting is how we create social change. Everyone who is a British citizen above the age of 18 has the right to vote, expanding from the EU referendum to a simple MP constituent vote, the range of voting events is vast. In fact, its link to social reform is so important, that some suggest that we must require all individuals to vote, in order to understand the scope of opinions in our British society fully. However, critics oppose this idea, asserting that forcing people to vote is entirely counterproductive and renders our democratic system paradoxical. Therefore, this essay will argue the cause that we should not force people to vote and instead explore other alternatives.
Although voting ensures the democracy of our society, forcing our civilians to do so would do the opposite. In fact, forcing individuals to vote would go against their absolute right of the right to believe under the ECHR. After all, if an individual feels no solution or no candidate adequately represents their belief - why should they vote for them? In forcing them to do so, they are having to cherrypick between two solutions, neither of which they feel represents them. Thus surely, here the purpose of the vote is somewhat undermined?
Instead, there is a plethora of more suitable resolutions to the lack of voters. Some are as simple as increased marketing to remind individuals to go vote. Others include better education about how the vote works and why it is important to a democratic system - and most importantly, how it affects them. By planting more polling stations in busy, crowded areas the toll of people going to vote will subsequently increase. It is important to note that human psychology renders us less willing to do things we know we are forced to do, by aligning voting with positive advertising and education, it will create a larger willingness to vote and impact society in a way the general population can. This reaffirms that there are other alternatives to forcing people to vote, some of which will be more useful.
However, forcing people to vote will help enact the most social change, thus for the greater good. Forcing people to vote would simply help the government carry out policies and legislation which best fit the entirety of the UK, not just those who chose to vote. Most of the time, when an individual doesn’t vote, it is not a grand gesture against the British political system, but rather an oversight. This would just serve as a gentle reminder for the greater good. It could also be argued that our role as a constituent in a democratic society is to vote, and thus we must uphold this. By forcing people to vote we are simply carrying out the tasks of a democratic society.
In conclusion, we should not force people to vote as it is counterproductive. Moreover, there are plenty of alternatives such as education and marketing which would lead to more sustainable and long-term positive reinforcement of voting. Although some try to argue that this policy is only helping those who are uneducated about when and how voting works, this is undermined by the possibility of other alternatives. Thus, those who do not want to vote in an election or referendum should not have to and that is their personal right, thus forcing people to vote is rendered immoral.
Written by Aurore
best one yet!
Wow!