No Vote

An unfortunate reality of elections is that so many people are disillusioned with our political choices that they do not vote. With that in mind, an elected “Majority” government is really a minority government. 

If a government is elected into power but receives less than 50% support from the eligible voting population, then they can in no way claim to be a majority government.  

The issue of “no vote” is an indicator of a system that has become so abused by the political parties that people are just giving up on ever having a government worth supporting.  That needs to change. 

How do we change that?

How do we send such a strong message to the political parties that their time is up, that the status quo is no longer acceptable? 

Obviously, electing a government that is able to claim majority support by less than 50% of eligible voters does not send the right message. They still claim a majority win. 

How do we as a nation reengage the population in the political process?  

Introducing a law that states you must vote or be punished with a fine will not work.   

I believe that the only way to reengage the voter in the process is a law that states upon becoming of legal age, the individual must choose a political party, must become a supporting member of that party, and must pay for that membership each year (a standard fee for all parties).

The fee must be high enough that the voter will think twice about where their money is going if the party they support does not live up to its promises, is involved in scandals, or spend recklessly, etc. 

Then, remove all “public” funding from political parties so that the only way they can have money to spend is through direct voter support.  (NO current party would ever support that, would they?)

I know that if someone I directly financially supported tried to stab me in the back, they would quickly loose my support.