Low voter turnout for municipal elections is nothing new. One hundred thousand residents in Cambridge — approximately 50,000 registered voters — and about 13,000 turn out.

In America, this number has declined from more than 70 percent in the 19th Century to about 50 percent in the late 20th Century. Off-year elections result in very low turnout rates — only 36 to 39 percent will show up to vote if presidential candidates are not standing for election. European democracies have much higher turnout rates, primarily because they have automatic voter registration, which the United States has yet to adopt.

Why is this? This is, with all intent and purpose, not a simple question with a simple answer. Many factors weigh why people don’t turn out. Higher income and older people are more apt to vote. Statistically, those who vote Republican are of a higher income, while those who tend to vote Democratic are lower income. Women are more likely to register and vote for the Democratic Party, while men are more likely to support Republicans. Both parties attract loose coalitions of voters who believe that the party they have supported will, in turn, support them with programs that benefit their interests.

From some of the outreach I’ve done with grassroots organizations regarding “get-out-the-vote” in the past, I found some of the following issues that reflected why many people didn’t vote. Families, who work low-wage jobs, people who feel that their local government is unreachable to them. Additionally, many felt that they didn’t want the government to have their personal information and felt as if they would be pried upon.

The highest voter turnouts are also usually people who have an interest in politics, and which still favors those with higher income and higher education. For instance, someone with less education is more inclined to have a lack of self-confidence, assurance and communication proficiency that’s required to employ the level of understanding necessary for issue-related ballot initiatives.

In addition, understanding the political arena is key, especially among the various complex issues facing the city of Cambridge. If the Cambridge constituency has a hard time grasping the understanding of those problems, they will remain unengaged. A few years ago, I made a phone call to my state senator in another city regarding an initiative that I wanted him to support and he spurted complex terminologies that a political scientist with a Ph.D. would need time to analyze. If our own political leaders are speaking in jargon, then most often the person will stay away from the political fray. In addition, some people feel as if their vote won’t be powerful enough to help the outcome of any political race, especially if they aren’t too enthusiastic about the candidate. Not being familiar with the candidates, election system, or political figures with a new move.

Many do not meet voter registration requirements, which sadly disenfranchise many; the top three being former convicts, the registry and same-day voter registration. First, those who are convicted are unable to vote, which I find to be odd. A former convict attempts to assimilate back into society and a lot of their basic rights are stripped away. Secondly, when you get your driver’s license, the registry registers people to vote, and over the years the registry has fallen behind with getting the registration information to the election commissions; and third, lack of same-day voter registration. When people have busy schedules, they forget. It would be great if we had same-day voter registration — people would be able to register and vote the same day of the election. Also, I’ve met people who didn’t vote because they felt that if they spoke out, they would be complaining, and often times the word “complaint” can be viewed in a negative connotation.

In short, if Cambridge wants to see more voter participation and civic engagement at the city’s meetings, I think one of the best ideas that has worked for a former city I used to live in is to alleviate the barriers that cause people not to attend and seriously began to address those issues. Personally speaking, as a parent, childcare is the main issue for me. If childcare was provided at these meetings, i.e., School Committee or City Council, I would be at every single meeting, and I’m sure that this doesn’t just affect parents with limited support system because childcare costs do add up. If the people reading this will adopt the ideas that School Committee candidate Patty Nolan has suggested regarding market research, perhaps it will be a beginning force into helping to address why people either don’t care, gave up or remain unconnected.

Cambridge Chronicle – Posted Sep 29, 2009 @ 10:12 AM

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