Over 20 countries have some form of compulsory voting, which requires citizens to register to vote and go to their polling place or vote on Election Day. Making voting compulsory will make the leaders feel legitimate, and they have the full backing of the citizens. 63 100 000 . For example, Sweden (82.6% in 2014), South Korea (77.9% in 2017), Israel (76.1% in … The legal voting ages Countries Whose Legal Voting Age is 16 Compulsory Voting makes leaders legitimate. Belgium has the oldest existing compulsory voting system, introduced in 1892 for men and 1949 for women. Many people realize just how important this freedom is, yet not everyone eligible to vote does. This age is usually stated in a country’s constitution as the legal voting age. Chapter IV, Section 68. Free . In as much as voting is compulsory in some countries, for most nations it is optional to vote.The voting ages vary from 16 to 25 in different countries of the world. Belgium, Turkey and Australia have made voting compulsory and turnout was 87.2, 86.4 and 80.5 percent respectively in the most recent national elections. Most countries in Latin America have similar policies. 7. Turkey and Australia have compulsory voting – so does Greece, which ranked 13th. In several other OECD countries, turnout has drifted lower in recent decades. Examples Argentina. People aged 18 and over who do not vote … Thailand . To vote they must present a valid Documento Nacional de Identidad at the corresponding voting center.. Voting for elected officials is a freedom afforded to many countries around the world. ‘Every person shall have a duty to exercise his or her right to vote at an election’ by Tom Head 13-05-2019 07:42 I mean seriously being forced to vote by threat of punishment for refusing to exercise a Right is utterly idiotic. With almost 35% of registered South Africans not voting this week, we've taken a look at countries where voting has been made a compulsory act. In a case where voting is made compulsory, all votes will be accounted for. In Argentina voting is compulsory for all citizens between 18 and 70 years old, non-compulsory for those older than 70 and between 16 and 18, and citizens with domiciles in foreign countries. Although compulsory voting on a national level may be a long-shot, the main argument for it remains pretty simple: Compulsory voting makes representative democracy more representative. The small canton of Schaffhausen has compulsory voting on all cantonal matters and in referenda. In democracies and republics, the people get to have a voice in their governments through voting.. Chapman thinks compulsory voting could be “an important tool for combating political apathy” in the United States. Most European nations exhibited higher VAP participation rates … Some people argue leaders are not legitimate because they did not participate in the process of choosing them. Greece has a compulsory-voting law on the books, though it’s not enforced; turnout there in parliamentary elections fell from 89% in 2000 to 63.5% last year. I do not support compulsory voting in the slightest, because the concept is completely undemocratic. Constitution 1997. Many countries that don’t have a compulsory voting system get strong turnouts.