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Voter Participation In Democracy

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Voter Participation in Democracies
Voter turnout means the process of political participation in democracies. While turnout is a straightforward measure, behind this measure there are so many reasons. Voter turnout reflects the results of elections as well as political behavior or voter attitudes and other indicators of democratic influence. Recognizing the significance of citizen participation in democracy (Dahl 1971), it seems that turnout plays an important role in democratic reinforcement.
Generally, turnout is determined by some factors and we can explain on three levels - the national, the district, and the individual. Variety of comparative studies have emphasized on national level factors, mostly the electoral rules, and compulsory …show more content…

It is difficult to find an ideal term of categorization for this level. "District" seems like a suitable choice as many factors do operate within the strict boundaries of electoral districts. But that is not always the case, and terms like "local," "regional" or "provincial" may be more appropriate in some instances. The two most common district level determinants are the competitiveness of elections, and whether an area is urban or rural. In their seminal work on participation, Verba, Nie, and Kim (1978) expand on the importance of group-based mobilization efforts in lifting turnout. Blais (2000) has shown that the more competitive elections lead to the higher the turnout, as elites are more likely to mobilize …show more content…

Do they work for a candidate or for a party? Do they have close communication with government officials? These determinants have a quite important for the degree of involvement. The fundamental expectation is that the higher degree of involvement or interest leads to the more likely to higher turnout (Powell 1986). At the individual level, the mechanism is that politically interested citizens are more likely to vote both because of their personal incentive and ties to politics. Furthermore, district-type effects can affect via membership, e.g. party campaign efforts can easily target those who have displayed political affiliation, increasing further affiliated citizen's likelihood to vote.
So many studies show that political institutions play a significant role in explaining the differences the rate of voter turnout across countries (Franklin, 2004). Of course, institutions are not the only effect on turnout. Culture, socio-economic factors, economic situations of countries and economic power, and non-institutional features of the political conditions also influence the rate of turnout (Franklin, 2004; Gray & Caul, 2000; Powell, 1986). Nevertheless, institutions are one of the most important

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