Menchik

As a foreigner, I find voting in the United States a very intriguing subject. Americans gloat about being the biggest democracy in the world, and yet they do not seem very eager to exert their civic rights. During the midterms in November, turnout was about 36 percent – the lowest since World War II. Coming from a country where voting is compulsory, this number seems strikingly small. But you don’t need to change the law and force people to vote to increase this participation rate. There are other ways to get it done.

When asked why they abstain from voting, some people say it is because they do not like any of the candidates, but that is just part of an excuse: Sometimes the real reason is that they don’t want to have the hassle of going to the polling location, stay in line and cast a ballot. While changing the candidates is not feasible, tackling the underlying motives may be a little easier. Generally, people are too busy (with work, school, family, etc.) to vote, so having election day on weekends or even making it a national holiday would do the trick. Another idea would be making voting a pleasant experience by changing the polling ambiance through small actions, such as offering snacks or playing light background music.

Despite some security concerns, a few states have implemented voting by mail, which substantially increased turnout. Maybe in the future we could take it to next level and make online voting happen, as long as there is a robust fraud-proof system. Well, if we can have online and mobile banking, why not voting?

In addition, there are many people – especially youth or students – that have not yet settled down and tend to move often. They face the problem of “not being registered” to a particular state or county, and use it as an excuse not to vote. The solution for this is making the registration process faster and easier, and preferably available during the very same date as the elections themselves. Thus, one can simply go to the poll and do everything required at once.

In terms of behavioral change, there are currently some enforcing activities going on, such as pre-voting reminders by phone, mail or email. In those cases, it is interesting to pay attention to what it is being said and how, and that can have a large impact on voting turnout. For instance, addressing a person as a “voter” can trigger a subconscious civic duty orientation and encourage someone to vote. Another trick is saying that turnout is expected to be high, so people will irrationally want to belong to that group by voting in that particular election. Stating that the person might be contacted after elections to talk about their experiences may also create a sense of commitment and responsibility that could propel one to vote.

Furthermore, discussing logistics with potential voters before Election Day will get them to actually make plans for it in terms of issues like transport and time management. Making them think about Election Day plans is a subliminal cue to potentially get them to vote. Other small triggering insights could be given by preliminary separate (and apparently unrelated) surveys about civic engagement, ethics and politics.

In sum, there are many ideas about increasing voting turnout in the United States. Instead of looking into complicated, farfetched solutions like changing legislation or reforming political parties, the key is making the voting process more convenient, pleasant and hassle-free. The actions to encourage people to vote should change from rational to “mindless” behavioral changes, aiming at the subconscious civic-engaged persona inside of everyone.

Pedro Menchik is a doctoral student in the field of food science. He is from Brazil.