40 million fewer votes than 2016

The Fascist Republicans are creating legal and illegal obstacles by Gerrymandering, creating voter fraud, using bogus right wing court decisions, and requiring more abnormal voter ID rules, regulations and laws to promote difficult, hard, or no access to polling locations

Why Americans Do Not Vote?

Election law in America is complicated and convoluted. There are many ways that Americans are disenfranchised and many others that place unnecessary burdens on potential voters. American politicians call the United States the “greatest democracy in the world,” yet our democratic participation, bound by unnecessary restrictions and burdens, demonstrates that that is not always the case. We owe it to ourselves, our children, and the legacy of the United States of America to move our country forward. We need laws that encourage and reflect our democratic identity.

We call ourselves a Democracy –- a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. However, the sad truth is that America has very low rates of participation in our “democracy.”

Only 55.7% of Americans voted in the last election (around 27% each for President Trump and Secretary Clinton). This is not normal or healthy for advanced democracies. The fact that our Senators, Representatives, and even President are selected by a small portion of our population, contrasts sharply with our democratic ideals. Ultimately, our system fails to encourage full voter participation. Therefore, to begin movement towards a better democracy, we looked into the many barriers that Americans face when heading to the polls.

It is important to note that this number for the United States voter turnout is from 2016 -- a presidential election year. During off-years the voter turnout is much lower. In 2014, turnout in the United States was 36.4%.

These low turnout numbers are not an anomaly. Voter turnout in the United States during presidential election years has remained around 50%-60% of the voting eligible population since the early 1900s. (It is important to note, however, that the voting eligible population differed significantly from the voting age population for much of U.S. History.)

The Sanders Institute
URL: [sandersinstitute.com]