Power to the People?

Politicians love to cast variations of the “return power to the people” slogan to those from whom they seek votes.

The people who bother to vote have the collective power to determine who represents them in the government and the policy directions they pursue.

According to a May 2017 analysis by Pew Research, the United States ranks 27th among the developed nations of the world in voter turnout. In Belgium, ranked #1—where voting is compulsory—more than 87% of the voting age population voted in the last national election. In #2 Sweden (no compulsory voting law) it was nearly 83%.

In the U.S., where registering to vote is an individual responsibility, only about 64% of the U.S. voting-age population (and 70% of voting-age citizens) were registered in 2016 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 91% of Canadians and Britons registered according to Pew, as did nearly 99% of Japanese citizens.

Yesterday, two special Congressional elections took place to fill seats held by people who were appointed to Cabinet positions. The opposition party ran aggressive and well-funded campaigns to elect their candidates, especially in the Georgia district vacated by Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Thomas Price.

Three times more money was spent in the Georgia 6th Congressional district campaign than in any other single Congressional race in the history of our country.

And 188,000 people who could have voted stayed home.

The winner’s margin: 9,700 votes.

188,000 people who could have voted in Georgia’s 6th Congressional district yesterday stayed home. The winning margin was 9,700 votes.

Power to the people who show up.

Government continues its steady encroachment into every aspect of American life, yet so many sit back and watch it happen. They forfeit what their ancestors fought and died to achieve.

Why? What say you?