Voting Process Needs Overhaul

Every four years, voters and non-voters alike, are subjected to the same trivial mudslinging that occurs when a democrat and a republican battle it out to become president of the United States. This year, with Barack Obama and Mitt Romney going at it, the rancor, boorishness, and utter dullness between the two centrist wannabes (but too afraid to rankle their own party’s constituents) should be at an all time high.

Voter turnout, more specifically the youth turnout, is an often coveted yet maligned prospect of every major election. Obama’s grass-roots campaign of 2008 was catered to the younger generation (largely through social media and a general openness about him), yet the young vote was still relatively weak when compared to any other group.

Voting is a choice to some; an obligation to others. The people of the United States would be better served if we were universally more informed. There is no simple solution to cure voter apathy, however, I do have a mix of ingredients that may help fix a reparable situation.

- Despite the jobless rate being too high, many people do in fact hold steady jobs. Most of those jobs require employees to work on Tuesday’s, which is also the day elections are always held. Often times, the voter finds the experience more burdensome than rewarding. Perhaps the process would be easier if voting took place on a weekend or over the course of two-to-three days, putting less stress on working parents, single moms, and the disabled.

- Make ballots easier to complete and comprehend, and in a federal election, the layout and design of a ballot in Maine should look very similar to one in Oregon. Perhaps the fiasco in Florida during the 2000 Presidential Elections would never have taken place if the ballot was easier to solve than a rubik’s cube. From a personal voting experience, I have found ballots to be rather confusing, and more specifically, the way the questions were phrased.

- Even though registration makes it easier and more possible to count up votes, registration should be more accessible in general, in addition to being available up until and through the voting process. Registering with one party should also not be allowed. Especially when looking at young voters, why should we box ourselves in to the agendas of one party?

- Lastly, the voting age should be reduced from 18 to 16. High schools would be required to hold a weekly class informing kids about what was going on in the news (there would still be a political science class). The class would also help students discern the differences between the two parties and the two candidates. Although many of the students will have no doubt been influenced by their parents, they are still at an age
where their mind is impressionable. Starting two years earlier would make a younger
generation that much more informed, perhaps even a bit more receptive than their elders.