The Importance of Voting

One of the fundamental elements in a democracy is suffrage, the universal right of adult citizens to cast ballots in municipal, state, and national elections and in doing so, exercise a degree of influence over the political process. However, "voter turnout is among the lowest in the Western world and America ranks in the bottom three of countries that hold free elections" (Ralph Nader for President Campaign, 1). There are many reasons why people choose not to vote, but the issue in this report is why it is important to vote even when a voter may feel that he or she is only choosing between the lesser of two evils and the related question of whether or not voters should support a third party candidate that has no chance or winning instead of supporting a major party candidate whose views are at least acceptable.

A brief analysis of the elements of political participation in the United States and the effects of political parties will be provided. The thesis to be addressed is that voting, even for a candidate with little or no chance of success or for the lesser of two evils is both a privilege and an obligation in a democratic republic.

America was formed as a democratic republic based on principles of representative government, an electoral system that encourages participation, and the rights of individuals to participate in a transparent political process (Shump, 1). The preamble to the U.S. Constitution "enumerates several guiding principles including the du

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ning a driver's license because no test is required and no fee is permitted. Ross (2) maintains that voting becomes a habit when young people begin to vote as soon as they turn 18 and are eligible to vote. Interestingly, in the United States, third parties have not resonated with a majority of voters because they tend to be special interest groups. Hence, they appeal to those whose interests they represent and tend to serve the purpose of sensitizing the public at large to specific issues (Longley, 1). Throughout the primary process, candidates from the two main political parties spend enormous amounts of money on attracting voters and positioning their candidates in the most favorable light. This process often inundates the public with information about the candidates and gives the public numerous opportunities to determine which candidate is most acceptable (CNN.com, 2). It is almost impossible that any single candidate will have universal appeal. For example, a voter may find Republican John McCain more appealing on issues of national security and prefer Democrat Barack Obama on issues like education and government services. Overall, choosing a candidate seems to involve selecting the individual and the party w

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