The right to vote

Do you think the voting system at the moment is fair or in need of change?

What requirements should a person meet before they should be allowed to vote?

Are the requirements at the moment okay but not taken at the right level (eg. age restrictions are great but should be lowered/raised)?

If you voted in the poll, please explain the reasoning behind your votes below.

(poll to follow)

Sometimes I think that anyone who will turn the majority age during a potential president's term should be allowed to vote.

I wish people were only allowed to vote if they knew what they were voting for...

I believe the voting age should be lowered to sixteen, or possibly, fifteen. On the impractical side, I believe that there should be no voting age, just a test to see if you understand the political system, and have a thorough understanding of the voting procedure and the country itself.

I think anyone who tries to vote for people like Bush, should not be allowed to vote.

i think that being a citizen and being over the age of 18 is good enough. if you start to tack on things like earnings, political parties, etc. it turns things into more of a dictorship than it has already become. i do think that changes need to be made but these changes must be done on the ethical level of the whole process.

In the Uk but I think in the USA to, I would like to see a test to demonstrate that you understand the political issues of the day. and can understand the political system. and that you can read and speak english
this should be done in a politically neutral way.

Terry
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Amen! Truly I say to you: Gather in my name. I am with you.

I think the whole Electorial College needs to be done away with. I think if it was, the right to vote would be used more.

I am not going to be popular with this opinion, but here goes:

I like the way the system in the US was originally set up (with a few exceptions). Obviously, race and gender should not preclude anyone from voting. Originally, as a Democratic-Republic, only the land owners could vote. The founding fathers warned (repeatedly) against forming a democracy. To them a democracy was a dangerous concept as people will tend to vote money into their own pockets and causes over the good of the nation.

In the original model, the president was not popularly elected at all. Andrew Jackson was the first president that was elected via a national election. Prior to that, each state had its own method for picking the electoral college. The president was more like a chairman than what he is today. Once presidents became elected nationally, we began to get less than the cream of the crop of electable candidates. Now they have to appease the masses rather than be a strong, decisive leader.

It was not until the early 1900's that Senators were popularly elected. Now it is nearly impossible to get a Senator unseated. They do not have enough accountability.

If it were my choice, only those who actually pay taxes would vote. That means you are a productive member of society with some stake in how your taxes are spent. Oh yeah, I think there should be a test. If a person knows who won American Idol, but cannot name their state representatives, they should not be allowed to vote.

I am standing by for my flaming. Peace out.

I think you should have to be a citizen, be at least 16, and if in the penal system at the time of the election, not allowed to vote. I also agree with Luke Wolf, that the Electorial College should be done away with and elections should be decided on popular vote alone.

Lycan said:

I think you should have to be a citizen, be at least 16, and if in the penal system at the time of the election, not allowed to vote. I also agree with Luke Wolf, that the Electorial College should be done away with and elections should be decided on popular vote alone.

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I hovered over the 'crime ' criterion, but didn't include it - I was unsure if I could choose more than I criterium (I've had a rough day and am not thinking too clearly) , because I then opted for citizenship and minimum age.


Technically, even though I didn't do so, I meant to vote as you did. Lycan.:help:

Felons should be allowed to vote once they have served their time. The whole idea is that they have a)Been rehabilitated and b)paid their debt to society. If prisons fail to do this, then they should be abolished and replaced with something that will serve this purpose. In any case, I find it unfair that felons are indiscriminantly stripped of their right to participate in the democratic process, especially considering that many people branded as felons are a)innocent and or b)convicted of petty theft, marijuana possession or similarly petty crimes or even of acts of civil disobedience in the interest of democracy. Stripping someone of their democratic rights is not something to be taken so lightly.

Faminedynasty said:

Felons should be allowed to vote once they have served their time. The whole idea is that they have a)Been rehabilitated and b)paid their debt to society. If prisons fail to do this, then they should be abolished and replaced with something that will serve this purpose. In any case, I find it unfair that felons are indiscriminantly stripped of their right to participate in the democratic process, especially considering that many people branded as felons are a)innocent and or b)convicted of petty theft, marijuana possession or similarly petty crimes or even of acts of civil disobedience in the interest of democracy. Stripping someone of their democratic rights is not something to be taken so lightly.

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I agree that only violent crimes should be considered for removal of voting rights. Without civil disobedience, there would not be a democracy in place.

18 is perfect. I dont want to see a bunch of bandwagon jumpers who are used to pupularity contest high school that live with their parents and dont know enough realities to vote at 15-16. 18 is still young, but atleast when you turn 18 your eyes start to open up a lot and you see a lot of things atht you didnt see a few years ago. Anyways I think only those who arent 18 yet propose this So guess the voting age will never lower, since they cant vote on it.

I think the drinking age, the age to go in to the military, and the voting age should be the same.

I feel that we got it working quite well here in Sweden. Voting rights for citizens comes from the day one turn 18 and are not to be stripped for any reason. It is perfectly possible to vote from within prison and even the mentally ill can vote, they are not many enough to cause any harm anyway. Actually, citizenship isn't even needed for all elections, only for the election for our national parliment. Forigners that live here may vote in the lower level, local elections if they want to.