I have always believed that one must vote.
But an insightful piece by journalist Ranjeni Munusamy before the elections questioned this hitherto unquestionable logic and I must say – as I saw how many voters chose to spoil ballots or simply stay away – I now question it too.
Choosing to withhold or spoil your vote, is also a democratic choice. Whilst it won’t assist in putting a politician into a seat in parliament, it does send a message that you are gatvol and no party deserves your vote. This year 235,449 people spoilt their vote. Well over 9 million people registered to vote but abstained. This is massive. People are clearly tiring of a system that does the same thing every few years, but for them doesn’t produce the promised change . Surely, we are entering a “post-democracy” era?
I have also heard it said that if you don’t vote you have no right to complain. Well, this is absurd. Firstly, everyone has a right to complain if they will. But more importantly, if you aren’t going to vote surely you should do something else to contribute to change? I am not a big fan of complaining but if you can’t vote, get involved in other ways. Write letters to your local press explaining why you chose not to vote. Get hold of your local ward councillor and demand accountability for specific needs within your community. Resolve to tackle racism in yourself and others. Get active in your local community: Start a community dialogue in which you discuss how to help your local school to perform better. Join your community block watch. Fix something that’s broken. Pick up litter. This is all doable regardless of who you are and what your situation is.
I did vote and I was excited to exercise that right. But as far as political choices were concerned, I was deeply conflicted. Had I been true to myself I wouldn’t have voted.
The truth is that to vote, withhold or spoil our vote is the end of our role as citizens of a democracy, unless we are prepared to participate for change beyond the ballot box. We can no longer delegate the running of our lives and our country to politicians and bureaucrats. This dance is up, and it didn’t work particularly well in the first place.
We must show up as active citizens every day between elections and contribute in ways that build our people and our country.
Then we will watch our country rise.
Hi Justin, thanks for another thought provoking article.
I read somewhere that the spoilt votes were the 6th largest block of votes this year – ahead of 42 other so called parties! And yes, the 9 million registered abstainers represents a massive degree of disillusionment with the political system in total and probably the ruling party in particular.
Yes, we can remain contributory citizens as you suggest, but surely the bigger issue is how we address reform of the system such that the electorate feel their vote results in some tangible form of accountability, which is surely the reason underlying the abstentions and the spoilt votes. People are seeing a highly frustrating disconnect between the encouragement to vote/ be democratic and the self centred actions of politicians in the ensuing 5yrs – “why should i vote?” is the right response, until the system changes .
I agree with this Kim. The system is what is failing people. I get a sense that something new is on the verge of being born globally…
Many thanks for your thoughts, Justin. Love the fluidity of your thinking. While there are lots of counter arguments, many of which I too once made, I no longer vote. Not that I put myself in the gatvol category of having had enough of the shenanigans of political parties and players etc. It’s the political system of divisiveness that I choose to no longer support. I just cannot see any real solutions coming out of political systems based, as all of them are, in “us” and “them” oppositional thinking. All the talk of divides in the world, between nations and within nations, and in all sorts of ways, is just not true. Vain and evil imagination, as it was put. Humanity is one nation under God and sadly it seems human beings won’t, or can’t, accept that – yet. But that day will come when we set aside the nonsense of imagining we’re separate from others. So I choose to focus on the essential goodness in everyone, whether it be evident or not, and do whatever I can in the moment that moves me, and by extension humanity, forward to living in the beautiful world our hearts know is possible. And if that takes picking up one piece of litter at a time, so be it.
Tino, I so appreciate your thinking on this matter. I feel very similar to you in that I am questioning deeply the economic and political systems we live within. And as we delve deeper into our spiritual selves and how that manifests in the physical world, it all seems to make less and less sense. There seems to be emerging a great discontent with current realities. This is clearly necessary for change. We must trust that we are in a liminal space in all areas – and that this is painful but necessary. I agree – pick up that litter!