Better communication, fewer elections can improve turnout

By Joel Miller

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Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy and we advocate that our democracy is the best form of government in the world. Our nation's vision seems to be: Democracy in every nation of the world.

Somehow though, we seem to have a disconnect between what we advocate for everyone in the world and what we do locally. Why is voter turnout in Linn County poor except when we are electing a president? Let's ask ourselves:

Can low voter turnout be attributed to low voter registration? Based upon the 2010 Census, about 93 percent of Linn County's 18 and older are registered to vote. We don't appear to have a voter registration problem.

Can low voter turnout be attributed to what or who is on the ballot? Voter turnout in the most recent election, i.e. the June 5 primary election, was 6.54 percent. On Sept. 13, 2011, the school districts of Linn County held elections and the overall turnout was 5.04 percent.

In the 2010 gubernatorial (general) election, voter turnout was 54.49 percent. And in the 2008 presidential election, it was 77.74 percent.

Obviously, what or who is on the ballot directly correlates to voter turnout. But why?

What occurs in a presidential election cycle that does not occur in other election cycles? Answer: More of everything, starting with the run-up to the caucuses, non-stop advertising and the pre-election blitz. And while we complain about the ads and robo calls, those along with phone calls, mailers, and door knocking motivate us to vote in larger numbers than in any other election.

The high voter turnout in presidential elections highlights three areas that contribute to lower turnout in non-presidential elections.

First, we have too many elections. Let's restrict the number of elections to two per year - one in the first half of the year, if needed, and one in the second half. Voters know that presidential elections are held once every four years. The majority don't understand when we have other elections or why.

Second, we don't do a good job of informing the voters about the candidates in non-presidential years. Let's take the money we save by reducing the number of elections and spend it on a booklet we mail to every household a couple of weeks before the election. The booklet would include profiles on every candidate, a summary of each ballot issue, a sample ballot specific to each household, and an absentee ballot request form. We have about 85,000 housing units in Linn County, so the cost should be about the same or less than we spent on our most recent local-option sales tax (LOST) election - $160,708.

And third, let's not purposely exclude voters in primary elections. Linn County has 55,000 voters registered as no party, 52,000 Democrats, and 41,000 Republicans.

We restrict our primaries to registered Republicans and Democrats. Let's open up the primaries and let the no-party registrants vote in them without having to change their registration to party. No-party registrants help pay for the primaries; they should be able to vote in them.

While other ideas have merit, e.g., compulsory voting or changing our voting days to Saturday or Sunday, those ideas require changes to the U.S. Constitution. Reducing the number of elections and moving to open primaries could be accomplished by the Iowa Legislature and governor. Creating a booklet to inform voters could be done at the county level.

Democracy starts when people become engaged in their government and take the time to express their opinion, and then vote. If we're going to advocate democracy for everyone else, then let's practice it - locally.

Joel Miller is Linn County Auditor. Comments: Joel.

Miller@linncounty.org