Longtime So Cal resident Charles Carr is a nationally published journalist and playwright. His award-winning Southpaw column has appeared in college textbooks published by Macmillan, St. Martin's Press, Bedford, and others. Charles writes Southpaw for his hometown newspapers, The Times-Advocate and The Roadrunner.
America's Greatest Party
It's not the Republican party. And it's not the Democratic party either. It's not Independents or Greens. It doesn't have a formal name or political manifesto. It doesn't even have an emailing list or a page on social media. Yet, in election after election, far more of this group is represented than any individual party -- often more than every other party combined.
I'm talking about American citizens who are eligible to vote but don't.
Historically, about 60% of eligible voters turn out for presidential elections and about 40% turn out for midterms. We did a little better in 2020 with the U.S. Census Bureau citing 67% of Americans voting. Projected voter interest in this year's presidential election suggests we might be heading back to the bad old days of very low turnout.
It may seem counterintuitive, but this group wields immense power and influence, in many ways just like an established political party. America's Greatest Party votes by not voting, if that makes sense, and begs the question: What happens to a country if half of it opts out of exercising having a say in its future?
When things aren't done, they get done, although usually not in the way we would have liked. Sort of like how when you don't take out the trash for long enough, things just start happening all by themselves.
People who don't vote generally cite one of three reasons:
First, "It's too hard to vote."
It's an undeniable fact that there are people out there who are using strategies like voter ID to make participation more difficult for entire segments of the population. They have been documented bragging about it openly, brazenly, working on the simple calculus that every voter on the opposing side who stays home on election day is a net win for their side. According to the Government Accounting Office, voter ID disproportionately affects black and younger voters. And by the time we get ourselves worked up enough to attempt to repair or undo the damage, it's often too late.
There's nothing wrong with requiring ID at the polls, so long as it's applied equitably. When a voter in Texas can use a concealed handgun license to vote but not a student ID, there's something else going on, and it stinks.
Still, when we consider what generations before us had to endure to secure the right to vote, impediments to that right are simply no excuse for not voting.
Next, "My opinion doesn't matter."
While most of us have no trouble believing we can make a difference when we respond to a social media post, or take the time to write a review of a product we bought online, or give a piece of our mind to the manager of a local business, somewhere along the way America's Greatest Party stopped believing they had an ability to affect their own government.
In the long term, bringing back experienced-based civics courses into the classroom will make a big difference. Neatoday.org's Amanda Litvinov notes, "Until the 1960s, it was common for American high school students to have three separate courses in civics and government. But civics offerings were slashed as the curriculum narrowed over the ensuing decades, and lost further ground to core subjects." In the short term, families can again learn how to hold a respectful discussion about current events, even at the dinner table. Drama is easy, comity is hard.
We all need to believe that, while one opinion might not have all that much impact, that opinion combined with a whole lot of people who feel the same way absolutely does. It's enough to shake this nation to its core.
Still not convinced? Ask yourself: If voting doesn't matter, why are so many people trying to keep so many of us from doing it?
Finally, "I don't have time." Or "I'm not political."
Fortunately, the solution to this one could not be simpler: If you have a member of America's Greatest Party in your own life, encourage them to vote. Send a friendly reminder or two. Maybe twelve. Break the rules of "polite conversation" and bring it up anyway. Refuse to accept the fashionable cynicism that voting is uncool or passé. If they have a mail-in ballot sitting on the counter, encourage them to fill it out. Circle back to confirm they've mailed it in. If they would rather vote in person, make it a fun new experience you share every election cycle. If they don't get out much, drive them to the polls. Just get them there. Last time I checked, carrying a person on one's back to the polls was still allowed in every state (although I haven't checked Alabama recently).
But, above all, if you yourself are a member of America's Greatest Party, consider tendering your resignation. Say goodbye to a group that never seems to have time to vote, yet always seems to find plenty of it to complain about the things their own inaction had a part in bringing about.
If you're not registered to vote, most states make the process relatively painless, none more so than California which allows registration up to 15 days before election day. If you miss the deadline, there's even a same-day registration option available. Register in-person by picking up a form at any county elections office, library, Department of Motor Vehicles, or U.S. post office. But the easiest way is to register online at registertovote.ca.gov.
Here's the deal: Show up and vote and enjoy full rights to griping, complaining, and long disassociative rants that make your children think it might be time to get out the will. You earned the right. And it's the best deal you'll find anywhere on this planet.
Election day is coming up fast. Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, let's take out the trash.