Government: IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In a number of countries, adults who fail to vote in national elections can be penalised, and some people believe this rule should be adopted everywhere. Although compulsory voting has clear advantages, I disagree that every country should force its citizens to vote.

Supporters of the system make several reasonable points. Where voting is compulsory, voter turnout is usually very high, so election results reflect the views of almost the whole adult population rather than only the most motivated groups. In countries where voting is optional, young people and those on low incomes are often the least likely to take part, and as a result politicians may concentrate their promises on older, wealthier voters who reliably appear at the polls. A legal duty to vote could push parties to address the needs of every section of society and would give the winning government a stronger claim to represent the nation.

Nevertheless, I believe the disadvantages are more serious. Voting is a democratic right, and in my view the freedom to take part in politics should include the freedom not to, whether as a form of protest or because a person genuinely feels unable to choose between candidates. Forcing such people to the polls does not make them better informed; some will simply cast a vote at random, which adds noise rather than meaning to the result. In addition, a penalty for not voting may fall hardest on poorer citizens, such as shift workers who cannot easily take time off on election day.

In conclusion, while high participation is desirable, compulsion is the wrong way to achieve it. Governments would do better to make voting easier, for example through automatic registration, postal votes and elections held at weekends, so that voting remains a civic duty that people choose to fulfil.