I am retired...from voting

[mickeyd]

After voting for nearly 50 years, I am now retired from voting. I now believe that my single vote does not count. Why not take the the the minimal effort to cast my vote? I have other things to do. I participate by viewing political discussions on cable TV to get a sense of what my fellow Americans think about the issues and candidates.

What ever my fellow Americans vote for is what I will comply with. I trust you all will not disappoint me.

 

[Teacher Terry]

My mom stood in line to vote when she was dying of cancer and was very sick. I think I will follow her example.

 

[Chuckanut]

Not that long ago in my home state a statewide election for a statewide office was settled after three recounts. The difference between the winner and loser was less than 150 votes out of over 2.5 million votes.

 

[HFWR]

What ever my fellow Americans vote for is what I will comply with. I trust you all will not disappoint me.

Oops...

 

[dirtbiker]

After voting for nearly 50 years, I am now retired from voting. I now believe that my single vote does not count. Why not take the the the minimal effort to cast my vote? I have other things to do. I participate by viewing political discussions on cable TV to get a sense of what my fellow Americans think about the issues and candidates.

What ever my fellow Americans vote for is what I will comply with. I trust you all will not disappoint me.

I equate voting to recycling. A single vote rarely makes a difference. A single person recycling doesn't do much in the grand scheme of things. However, if everybody thought that way, nobody would vote or recycle. Also, when you vote and/or recycle regularly, you may influence others to do the same without even knowing, and they may influence others, and so on and so forth. Likewise, when you don't do either of those things, and especially when you make a declaration to others that you have quit doing either of those things, you may influence them not to vote or recycle.

I vote and recycle.

 

[W2R]

I stood in a long line to vote in a state and local election just weeks after my total knee replacement. Several fine gentlemen saw my scar and walker, and let me go in front of them. I really appreciated that. Then after voting I was able to find a chair to sit in until F finished voting too.

Not all of those I voted for, won. I didn't expect them all to win. Still, one candidate that I voted for barely won so I was glad about that.

By voting I am expressing my opinions in the most serious and lasting way. Sure beats spouting off about politics on the internet.

I will never just not vote. I take voting very seriously, and always have. Actually when I think of what could happen here, I cherish my right to vote; hopefully my vote and many others may help keep the US out of the wretched state that some other countries have ended up in lately.

 

[braumeister]

"We electors have an important constitutional power placed in our hands: we have a check upon two branches of the legislature, as each branch has upon the other two; the power I mean of electing at stated periods, one branch, which branch has the power of electing another. It becomes necessary to every subject then, to be in some degree a statesman: and to examine and judge for himself of the tendencies of political principles and measures."
-- John Adams

"Let each citizen remember at the moment he is offering his vote that he is not making a present or a compliment to please an individual--or at least that he ought not so to do; but that he is executing one of the most solemn trusts in human society for which he is accountable to God and his country."
-- Samuel Adams

"Now more than ever the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption."
-- James Garfield

"The Americans are the first people whom Heaven has favored with an opportunity of deliberating upon and choosing the forms of government under which they should live."
-- John Jay

 

[ShokWaveRider]

What ever my fellow Americans vote for is what I will comply with. I trust you all will not disappoint me.

So much for that theory.

 

[Dtail]

OP
I assume you can't be surprised with the above reactions so far.

 

[OldShooter]

Not that long ago in my home state a statewide election for a statewide office was settled after three recounts. The difference between the winner and loser was less than 150 votes out of over 2.5 million votes.

Yes. Thus demonstrating that a single vote is statistically insignificant. There is no subjective aspect to this observation. It is simply mathematics. If you want to vote and it makes you feel good, fine. But do not expect that it will have any effect on the outcome.

If you want to influence an election get out there with your time and money, trying to turn out a statistically significant number of voters that agree with your position. But even to the extent that you are successful with that, your individual vote still does not count.

"But what if everyone felt that way and no one voted?" Then I would waltz down to the polling place and pick the next president, my vote having become statistically significant.

(DW hates this argument.)

 

[aja8888]

What ever my fellow Americans vote for is what I will comply with. I trust you all will not disappoint me.

You don't have to worry, many dead people that are voting will make up for you. Also, the voters with fake ID and illegals that cast ballots won't disappoint you either.

Then we have the fake mail in ballots to relieve your concerns and also the folks that mess with the counting of ballots.

You are covered.

 

[Jerry1]

I vote. I vote in a district that is solidly in the grasp of the other party. I could easily say my vote doesn’t count, but I vote. I don’t know the number, but I think it’s unfortunate that such a small percentage of our citizenry vote. Even in terms of registered voters, the turnout can be small at times.

 

[Aerides]

I vote, and will vote. In generals, in primaries, in state, district, city, county elections, for mayors and ballot measures - you name it. I prefer to do so in person, but will mail-in if and when I need to.

There are countless men and women who put their lives on the line every day to defend my right to do so, I think exercising that right honors them in a small way.

There are also countless men and women in other parts of the world who are also risking their lives to obtain this right so many take for granted.

 

[wmc1000]

We can vote by absentee ballot even if we are in our home district on election day. Since they mail us our ballots and it costs nothing to send back it is the best way to go for us.

Additionally, it is nice to look at the ballot and be able to research the candidates before making a blind choice especially at the local and state levels.

 

[Dtail]

We can vote by absentee ballot even if we are in our home district on election day. Since they mail us our ballots and it costs nothing to send back it is the best way to go for us.

Additionally, it is nice to look at the ballot and be able to research the candidates before making a blind choice especially at the local and state levels.

+1

 

[COcheesehead]

I am retiring from paying taxes. A single tax payer doesn't count much.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Yes. Thus demonstrating that a single vote is statistically insignificant. There is no subjective aspect to this observation. It is simply mathematics. If you want to vote and it makes you feel good, fine. But do not expect that it will have any effect on the outcome.

If you want to influence an election get out there with your time and money, trying to turn out a statistically significant number of voters that agree with your position. But even to the extent that you are successful with that, your individual vote still does not count.

"But what if everyone felt that way and no one voted?" Then I would waltz down to the polling place and pick the next president, my vote having become statistically significant.

(DW hates this argument.)

X1000. The math is pretty simple. I used to vote...I have voted consistently since turning 18. That changed when the I realized the state I moved to made its voter's rolls public. As far as I am concerned, it is no ones business to know my political affiliation so I did not register. Am I am terrible American? I don't think so, my 22 years of active service in the military should be good enough.

 

[prudent_one]

I am in charge of a polling place have been in that job for 5 years. Other states probably do things differently, but the way it's done here it would be exceedingly difficult to have dead people or illegals or non-registered people vote, or have fake mail-in ballots count. We have 5 people working and it would take collusion among all 5.

This is why it's good for people in the minority party to volunteer to be poll watchers in areas where one party is so dominant. If you have poll watchers (these people are court-appointed) there's almost zero chance of chicanery.

The other point I would make is that things start at the local level. If uninterested voters don't turn out for elections unless there are congressional/presidential races, you get lousy elected officials at the local level. Due to name recognition, many of those lousy officials move up to state level, then they end up in Congress.

It really is simple. Turnout is so low that a motivated electorate can get almost anyone elected at a local or state level. But people don't seem to be motivated, therefore the machine rolls on.

I can tell when an entrenched incumbent is facing a tough race. The party machine rounds up drivers, they come in at 4:00 to see who has already voted, then they call/visit people registered in their party who haven't shown up yet and offer them rides to the voting location.

You wouldn't believe how many people come in to vote and the only question they have for me is "how do I vote straight party?" They don't even care who is running, but those people vote. We need more informed voters to counteract that.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We should be like Australia and fine people that refuse to vote.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

We should be like Australia and fine people that refuse to vote.

Feel free to pack up, I heard Australia is a fantastic place to live. There are enough compulsory laws on the books as it is.

 

[davebarnes]

I have only missed one election since 1968 and that was a municipal election.
Colorado has "vote by mail" and voting is so easy. I mark my ballot and drop into a big steel box at the park.
I expect to vote until I die.

On the other hand, I do think that old farts' votes should count less than youngsters. The kids have more invested in the future than I do.

 

[dirtbiker]

X1000. The math is pretty simple. I used to vote...I have voted consistently since turning 18. That changed when the I realized the state I moved to made its voter's rolls public. As far as I am concerned, it is no ones business to know my political affiliation so I did not register. Am I am terrible American? I don't think so, my 22 years of active service in the military should be good enough.

This is interesting, and disconcerting. I had never considered that this would be public record. I just checked, and in my state, name, address, DOB, voting history, and voting district is available to anyone for non-commercial use for a fee. I don't like this. This won't keep me from voting, but I certainly understand why it would keep people from doing so.

By the way, in case anyone is interested, here is the list of access to and contents of voter registration lists by state:

http://www.ncsl.org/research/electi...s-to-and-use-of-voter-registration-lists.aspx

 

[karen1972]

Wasn't the last election determined by like 70,000 votes, thats like tiny. More importantly local elections are often decided by just a few people, the last one in my county was a difference of 7 votes.. at 7 votes I know very well my vote counts. Elections are often not decided by who shows up, but by who stays home.

 

[DFDubb]

hopefully my vote and many others may help keep the US out of the wretched state that some other countries have ended up in lately.

I think that ship has sailed.

 

[OldShooter]

... the last one in my county was a difference of 7 votes.. at 7 votes I know very well my vote counts. ...

Not sure how you come to that conclusion. If you voted with the 7, then changed your vote, the winner would have won by six instead of seven. So whichever side of the issue you were on, it didn't matter.

If, OTOH, as I mentioned, you had devoted your time and money to turning out ten or twenty voters who agreed with you that might have changed the result.