My blog has consisted on ways to increase voter turnout and my last advice would be to reward those who vote. Those who go through the difficult process of registering and waiting in long lines deserve get more than just an “I voted” sticker.
Studies have shown that once you vote, you are more likely to continue voting. Rewarding voters would be better than penalizing those who do not vote because it would still be a choice and not a requirement.
The Washington Post mentioned a nonprofit organization in Philadelphia and Los Angeles who conducted an experiment of a voting lottery. In Philadelphia, a man won $10,000 and “Los Angeles netted another Voter a $25,000 purse.” Voter turnout increased in both states during local elections.
To prevent people from voting only for the incentive, before inputting the ballot, there should be information on each party and what each candidate plans for the future. This will educate voter on who and what they are voting for.
Although voter turnout has increased since the last election, Texas voter turnout is still considered very low. Texas needs to make a change to encourage people to vote and what better way to do that then to give them an incentive. People would not mind waiting in a long line for a chance to win $10,000. Not only are the people getting something they want, they are also voicing their opinion and potentially making our country better.
3 comments:
I thought Betsy's blog about voter turnout was quite interesting, I have never heard of the government offering cash incentives to people just for voting, this is a great tactic to increase voter turnout because who doesn't like getting free money? In Betsy's blog she quoted from The Washington Post that in the state of California a cash incentive "of only $25 raised turnout in municipal elections by almost 5 percent." Betsy also commented on how a man won $10,000 in Philadelphia! This is crazy to me, how could you not want to vote if you are given the chance to win that much of an amount of money. Texas voter turnout is very low and I agree with you Betsy, Texas does need incorporate this tactic, even if it is as little as $5, broke people in college will definitely appreciate it and I am sure the Texas voter turnout will increase if they do this. I enjoyed reading Betsy's blog as well as The Washington Post's article about voter turnout, I have never about this method before and I think every state should offer cash incentives to increase voter turnout. Voting is very important, you have a say in who you want to represent and what changes you want to happen. Betsy makes a great point about how, "there should be information on each party and what each candidate plans for the future." so that you can know what your voting for and to "prevent people from voting only for the incentive." Thank you Betsy, great post!
While I agree that the voter turnout after incentive in California is an interesting prospect, I cant help but be alarmed that this is what we may resort to as far as getting voters to the polls. I could quickly see this becoming an issue. How could we regulate this incentive program to keep it fair amongst states? How do we keep this program from being manipulated with the access to voting places for those constituents already dealing with a gerrymandering system? How do we properly provide unbiased information in which to educate voters looking to cash in? If we are truly only motivated my receiving money instead of exercising our rights as citizens for its own sake, how do we keep up maintaining that desire? Surely over time we would have to raise the incentive rate, and who pays for these incentives is also up for debate. The Washington Post article that Betsy cited mentions many options, but not the mechanics that would specifically create this resolution to voter turnout. The article mentions that the voting authorities would be tasked with maintaining accurate voting records, but what all would that entail? Don’t get me wrong, if this is the only way we can get people to the polls, I think that its an experiment worth trying out. But I think we should start first with more voting education at younger ages and across all communities. Focusing more on local elections where voter turnout is lowest, we reignite and redefine that passion that we see in voters for national elections by making it easier to get to the polls. Our issues with creating fair and realistic access to polls is where we should start before we get too far ahead of ourselves and create more issues than we solve.
In Betsy Rivera's blog stage seven commentary entitled "Voter Turnout", it seems to be the last entry into this topic. This last entry consists of the ways counties and cities can promote voter turnout. The beginning paragraph explains how voters would be more likely to vote if they had incentives, instead of receiving a sticker. This is a good opener as readers who have voted can relate to the frustration of long voting lines, therefore hooking the reader in.
Rivera mentions that when people vote once, "they're more likely to continue voting"; however, there are no figures to back that statement up. This is really the only instance of not including figures, as her next example of what voters have won in various locations. The examples Rivera utilizes are great, it possibly gives the reader an incentive to ask for changes like these.
Rivera also added a piece that didn't cross my mind until reading that paragraph and gives a good solution to possible problems that would arise. Her suggestion is to inform voters on candidates before announcing incentives so that people could still make somewhat informed decisions. This is a great way to show readers that the author truly thought this issue out, therefore gaining the trust of the reader.
The last paragraph focuses on Texas, and its significant low voter turnout despite a nationwide increase in the 2016 election. Rivera explains how Texas needs incentives for voters, to further encourage citizen participation. Her ending statement is a good conclusion to her commentary, noting that this would benefit citizens and political decisions alike.
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