Political Participation In America

Political Participation in America
Throughout the United States, American citizens have the right to express their political opinions and participate through several different methods. The most widespread way Americans express their opinion on public policy and leadership is by voting. Despite this fact, the U.S. still has one of the lowest voter turnout rates compared to European countries. Some Americans have a deep since of civic duty to vote while others feel it is a waste of time. Both of the major parties in the U.S. continually work on ways to get citizens to use their right to vote and increase their interest in public policies.
First, there are several reasons why the U.S. has a lower turnout rate than European countries. The most
Some of the explanations include the attitude many Americans have about politics, their income, and age. Unfortunately, many Americans plainly do not care and have no interest in politics. They have a deep apathy for voting and believe that the outcomes of elections rarely effect their lives. Some citizens describe a feeling of alienation where they believe their voice will never be heard and their vote will never make a difference. in contrast, other Americans describe a sense of civic duty to participate politically and pay attention to public affairs. Both feelings of apathy and civic duty have been traced back to the parents depending on if they participated in politics. A sense of alienation however can have adult roots. An example is given in the textbook where some of the white Democrats in the 60s felt, "left out, believing that gains for the African-American community would come at their expense" (Patterson226). Studies have shown that people who receive a college education and have an above-average income also have an above-average voting rate. Contrasted with those who make below average and never attended college, upper income Americans have roughly a 50% increase in voter turnout. Americans with less income as well as young adults typically have a harder time registering and are less likely to follow politics. In fact, both middle-aged and senior citizens out vote
Perhaps one of the simplest ways to accomplish this goal would be to have the government automatically register voters. This would present the opportunity for citizens to vote without having to go through a difficult process. Another way would be to make election day a holiday like many other European countries. By doing this, Americans would recognize the importance of the election and provide ample time for them to cast their ballot. William Galston of the University of Maryland proposed that the U.S. require citizens to vote or otherwise pay a fine. While this would increase voter turnout, it would also cause people to resent the elections and decrease the amount of freedom people have from which the country was built on. Unlike the United States, countries in Europe have three or more parties including a socialist one. This provides an alternate option and causes lower income voters to typically go vote for that party. However, it would be incredibly difficult for a socialist party to garner support in the U.S. as such a high emphasis is placed on individualism. There is not much that can be done to improve voter turnout to the level of most European countries in America but steps can be taken to make the process