It’s mandatory voting in Australia, but you just need to turn up and mark your name off the list and you won’t get hassled to vote. But I guess, once you’re there…might as well vote.
And the fine for not voting is $50 or so, and the electoral commission will take most reasonable excuses and waive the fine if you don’t make it.
So it’s more like a, “come on guys, do your civic duty” kind of thing as opposed to MANDATORY, and 90-something percent of the voting population in Australia just rolls with it.
Bonus: At most polling places you can usually get a “democracy sausage” for a small donation to a local cause, so most people will wander in just for that.
Australia has mandatory voting which is an interesting one. Quick search tells me the last turnout was nearly 90%.
It’s mandatory voting in Australia, but you just need to turn up and mark your name off the list and you won’t get hassled to vote. But I guess, once you’re there…might as well vote.
And the fine for not voting is $50 or so, and the electoral commission will take most reasonable excuses and waive the fine if you don’t make it.
So it’s more like a, “come on guys, do your civic duty” kind of thing as opposed to MANDATORY, and 90-something percent of the voting population in Australia just rolls with it.
Bonus: At most polling places you can usually get a “democracy sausage” for a small donation to a local cause, so most people will wander in just for that.