Compulsory Voting
For and Against

Leading political theorists Jason Brennan and Lisa Hill debate the drawbacks and benefits of voter turnout.

Jason Brennan (Author), Lisa Hill (Author)

9781107613928, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 12 June 2014

240 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm, 0.38 kg

'Jason Brennan and Lisa Hill have performed a valuable service by brilliantly analyzing and critiquing the many arguments for and against compulsory voting, ranging from the most obvious to those that are counterintuitive and obscure. An original, readily accessible contribution to the scholarly literature.' Ilya Somin, George Mason University

In many democracies, voter turnout is low and getting lower. If the people choose not to govern themselves, should they be forced to do so? For Jason Brennan, compulsory voting is unjust and a petty violation of citizens' liberty. The median non-voter is less informed and rational, as well as more biased, than the median voter. According to Lisa Hill, compulsory voting is a reasonable imposition on personal liberty. Hill points to the discernible benefits of compulsory voting and argues that high turnout elections are more democratically legitimate. The authors - both well-known for their work on voting and civic engagement - debate questions such as: • Do citizens have a duty to vote, and is it an enforceable duty? • Does compulsory voting violate citizens' liberty? If so, is this sufficient grounds to oppose it? Or is it a justifiable violation? Might it instead promote liberty on the whole? • Is low turnout a problem or a blessing?

Part I. Medicine Worse than Disease? Against Compulsory Voting Jason Brennan: 1. The heavy burden of proof
2. Democratic legitimacy and the consequences of compulsion
3. Do your share or else
4. Should we force the drunk to drive? Part II. Compulsory Voting Defended Lisa Hill: 5. Compulsory voting: background, effects, feasibility and basic premises
6. Turnout, abstention, and democratic legitimacy
7. Is compulsory voting an unjustified burden on personal autonomy? Is there a right not to vote?
8. Is requiring people to vote contrary to democratic values?
9. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Comparative politics [JPB], Political science & theory [JPA], Social & political philosophy [HPS]