While voter apathy is a big problem, it is likely that voter suppression targeted at the tie breaking areas has more of an effect on the overall outcomes. Suppression includes duscouraging engagement, leading to apathy.
Like I have voted in every election that I could, but my electoral college votes always went to the person I voted against. Even locally the vast, vast majority of my votes were for the losing party. It is really hard to not be apathetic, and for me voting is a breeze.
Agreed. And to your point, competitive states without voter suppression like Wisconsin and Michigan had turnout of around 75%, while Texas (which is most known for suppressing voters) only achieved 60% turnout.
Texas is mostly a cultural issue. The left in this state are a bunch of defeatist do-nothings who think Texas will always be red. I cannot tell you the number of times I’ve talked to a like minded person, asked them about voting, only for them to give some half-hearted excuse why they didn’t/won’t.
With the way early voting works here, suppression is hard to pull off. For 2 weeks you can show up at any polling place to vote, even the ones in the rich white neighborhoods. The last time I voted, it took all of 10 minutes. There’s no doubt some fuckery with voter registration, but you have plenty of opportunity to check your status online ahead of the election.
they’re true and you’ll only see them the most in houston and san antonio and a little bit in a dallas and austin.
source: me, a poor brown man who used to live in texas and tried to vote there for 5 years.
the excuses they come up to de-register you are with are laughable to hear; but texan officials will say it with a straight face and texan “liberals” will justify it by saying “it’s the law”.
moving from san francisco to austin has taught me that texan “left” is further right than in most places; but yes, they’re defeatists to the extreme and it makes sense given the state’s political recent history.
While voter apathy is a big problem, it is likely that voter suppression targeted at the tie breaking areas has more of an effect on the overall outcomes. Suppression includes duscouraging engagement, leading to apathy.
And Congress could have done something about it when Democrats had the majority in both houses. In one hand, they had the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and in the other, they had the continued preservation of the Jim Crow Filibuster.
The last presidential election had ~60% turnout. That’s one of the highest turnouts EVER. People sitting at home are indeed the problem.
While voter apathy is a big problem, it is likely that voter suppression targeted at the tie breaking areas has more of an effect on the overall outcomes. Suppression includes duscouraging engagement, leading to apathy.
Like I have voted in every election that I could, but my electoral college votes always went to the person I voted against. Even locally the vast, vast majority of my votes were for the losing party. It is really hard to not be apathetic, and for me voting is a breeze.
Agreed. And to your point, competitive states without voter suppression like Wisconsin and Michigan had turnout of around 75%, while Texas (which is most known for suppressing voters) only achieved 60% turnout.
Texas is mostly a cultural issue. The left in this state are a bunch of defeatist do-nothings who think Texas will always be red. I cannot tell you the number of times I’ve talked to a like minded person, asked them about voting, only for them to give some half-hearted excuse why they didn’t/won’t.
With the way early voting works here, suppression is hard to pull off. For 2 weeks you can show up at any polling place to vote, even the ones in the rich white neighborhoods. The last time I voted, it took all of 10 minutes. There’s no doubt some fuckery with voter registration, but you have plenty of opportunity to check your status online ahead of the election.
I have read a lot of reports on how Texas doesn’t provide polling places in poorer, minority neighbourhoods, forcing them to travel far to vote.
And I have also heard reports of people who had to stand in line for hours to vote in Texas. Again, in poorer, minority neighbourhoods.
Are you saying those reports are not true?
they’re true and you’ll only see them the most in houston and san antonio and a little bit in a dallas and austin.
source: me, a poor brown man who used to live in texas and tried to vote there for 5 years.
the excuses they come up to de-register you are with are laughable to hear; but texan officials will say it with a straight face and texan “liberals” will justify it by saying “it’s the law”.
moving from san francisco to austin has taught me that texan “left” is further right than in most places; but yes, they’re defeatists to the extreme and it makes sense given the state’s political recent history.
Couple that with a state party that cuts funding to progressives because they’re not republican-adjacent enough.
And Congress could have done something about it when Democrats had the majority in both houses. In one hand, they had the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and in the other, they had the continued preservation of the Jim Crow Filibuster.
Democrats chose to keep the filibuster.