Ways to Increase Voter Turnout

In 2012, just 53.6% of the population voted in the presidential election.

The year 2012 was the first time we had voted for our first African American President. Another way we could think of the year 2012, is the first year where minorities have actually won. Although it's not the highest percentage of citizens who voted, it was a monumental win for those who differ in terms of race, religion etc. It is easy to see why the year 2012 was a year where doors opened and those who were at a disadvantage, now felt confident. More people decided to be open to taking minorities more seriously. In order to get the change that minorities would like to see, they first have to educate themselves on potential candidates, which may take some time, but will eventually be beneficial in the end. Secondly, after educating themselves on potential candidates, they need to vote and that is where we come in. 

Three ways to get more people to vote:

1. Allow people to schedule voting appointments.

In recent years, we have seen a declining number in percentages when it comes to voting. One way to maybe increase these numbers is to allow people to set up appointments around their schedule. This allows those with families and busy schedules, to be able to make time to do something that is highly recommended. Voting should be easy for the people and although Oregon is on to something where citizens can mail in their votes on their way to work instead of waiting for a booth at a specific location, voting should be made easier for everyone. 

2. The flexibility to vote anytime during a period of several days or even a week. That way, unforeseen emergencies, scheduling issues, work or plain old forgetfulness wouldn't prevent someone's vote from being counted.

The highest percentage of presidential votes that America has witnessed happened in 1876 where approximately 81% of the US population voted. Nowadays anywhere between 50% and 57% of the US population vote. This is a dramatic drop off as it is said that we now have more people in the states. With that said, more people are on the go and constantly have busy schedules that make it tough for them to come in on a specific day to vote. Instead of a few days where people can vote, voting should be made accessible for several days or weeks including weekends.  This gives those who don't have a lot of time on their hands to make some so they have a chance to potentially swing the presidential election. With more voters, we can truly elect the person who we want and feel confident in the decision that we made. With 50% of the population voting and the other 50% not, it makes it tough for everybody.

3. Make Election Day a holiday.

An easy way to get more votes is to make election day a holiday. People may choose to take it off and not vote while others will take advantage of it and go vote. This will allow both those who have jobs to take the day off and those in school, to take a few hours out of their day and go vote for their next president. If people choose to not vote on this day, they can't be unhappy with the choice of their next president as they have had a whole day designed specifically for that. This would be beneficial to everybody.