ABSTRACT
When any comparison is made between citizens of Australia, Luxembourg, Brazil or Belgium and British citizens, it would appear that British citizens are considerably less interested in using their democratic right to vote. However, the comparison is not quite that straightforward. Students of citizenship need to ask the question as to what Australia, Luxembourg, Brazil and Belgium have in common. The answer is that these four countries require by law that all citizens must vote in elections. The idea of compulsory voting has been seen by some in modern Britain as a means of reducing voter apathy and reinforcing a balance between a citizen’s rights and their responsibilities. All citizens have the right to elect their representatives, but for this right to be meaningful, enough citizens have to act responsibly and cast their vote. At present, UK citizens are required by law to enter their names on the electoral register but there is no compulsion to make a citizen vote. For those who support the notion of compulsory voting, there is the belief that citizenship not only gives a citizen rights, but demands certain responsibilities and obligations from them. One such responsibility and obligation is to judge other citizens and perform jury service when called. If compulsory jury service is culturally acceptable to British citizens, then logically the responsibility to preserve those democratic traditions that shape British culture and citizenship should be equally acceptable. Compulsory voting would appear to be a small price to pay for citizens to preserve a democratic system that provides peaceful social change and protects citizens’ human rights. Some would go further and argue that the democratic system that shapes British culture needs to be not only preserved, but also strengthened, and this is something that all citizens have a responsibility towards achieving. Since all citizens should share this responsibility, all citizens should vote. Compulsory voting would provide a major contribution towards supporting the democratic system that could be achieved with minimal inconvenience for citizens.
