Some Just Won't Vote, No Matter What

Wednesday, October 27, 2004 Dennis FielyTHE COLUMBUS DISPATCHMillions of Ohioans, as history shows, are poised toabstain from what has been called the most importantpresidential election of their lives."I feel like it is my duty as a U.S. citizen to vote,"said Jen Horval, a 20-year-old Ohio State Universitystudent from suburban Cleveland. "But I really don'tknow who to vote for."A highly divisive, high-stakes campaign has failed todent the ambivalence, apathy, disgust or ignorance ofthe people whom pollsters ignore: likely nonvoters.Later this week, Secretary of State J. KennethBlackwell is expected to issue a turnout predictionfor Election Day.Yet, even if Ohio were to equal its 70 percent turnoutin 1960 - a figure unmatched since - about 2.5 millionof the 8.5 million state residents of voting age stillwould not have cast a ballot."There is a habitual group of nonvoters," said HerbWeisberg, a political-science professor at Ohio StateUniversity. "No matter what happens, they are notgoing to vote."Typically among those ranks are the young, poor,uneducated or infirm who lack the time, skill,knowledge or means to participate."Voting involves considerable effort," Weisberg said."If our lives were simple, voting would be easy. Butour lives are not simple anymore."Other nonvoters include the indecisive or dissatisfiedwho choose to abdicate their right, sometimes inprotest of the candidates.Although nonvoters are branded as slackers shirkingtheir civic duty, "Sometimes people have good reasonsnot to cast their ballots," said John Green, directorof the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics atthe University of Akron.The disenfranchised often lack access to resourcesthat could engage them - such as newspapers, cable,the Internet and transportation.Many, Green said, are too consumed with earning aliving and raising a family."The more affluent and educated have more leisure timeto spend on politics."Roger McClendon spent six months trying to registervoters on behalf of the Association of CommunityOrganizations for Reform, a nonpartisan group for low-and moderateincome families.Between 5 percent and 10 percent of the thousands ofpeople he approached acknowledged a lack of interest."One point they brought up all the time was that theywere just too busy working to get out and vote," saidMcClendon, 45, of Columbus, who is unemployed.Lawrence Tackett works as many as 60 hours a week tosupport his family of five."I get home at 6:30 or 7 p.m., and I'm tired," saidthe 32-year-old owner of the Hilltop Barber Shop. "Ireally don't care about the election. I'm just workingtoo hard."Tackett shares his shop with barber Tony Robinson, awould-be voter surprised to learn that he missed theregistration deadline."I'm kind of mad about it," said the 30-year-oldmarried father of one. "I thought I had more time."Each expressed doubtsTo find out how your views compare with those of thepeople running for president, U.S. Senate and U.S.House of Representatives, go to www.dispatch.com andclick on the Candidate-Match icon. about bothPresident George W. Bush and Democratic challengerSen. John Kerry - uncertainty that could translateinto paralysis, Green said."People who see clear differences and have clearpreferences are much more likely to vote."New voters in Ohio have surged to more than half amillion since last year.Still, a name on the rolls doesn't guarantee a vote:Nearly 40 percent of registered Ohioans didn't castballots in 2000.Jill Barkley's decision to register for the first timethis year, she said, reflects her growing interest inpolitics, although she finds cynicism replacing herapathy."I don't know if I will vote or not," said the27-year-old Columbus bartender. "I don't believeeither candidate will make the country better. Themore I dive into this political system, the more Irealize that the candidates are working for somebodybesides the people."Too much information "can almost be a burden," saidGregory Gwiasda, an OSU graduate student in politicalscience who is exploring the role of ambivalence invoter turnout.In the modern, 24-hour news cycle, the constant claimsand counterclaims from candidates and commentatorsmight freeze potential voters eager to absorb all thefacts."Some voters, worried about making the wrong choice,don't make any choice at all," Gwiasda said. "And somepeople like to avoid difficult decisions."Barkley shares with many unlikely voters a distrust ofthe electoral process - exacerbated by the 2000vote-count debacle in Florida."I have very little faith in the system," she said.The Florida fiasco sent a mixed message: One votecould make a difference, as long as it was counted."There is a lot of carry-over effect from 2000,"McClendon said. "Some people think Bush is going toget in no matter what."Grandview Heights lawyer Don Ruben is among a group oftrained volunteers who on Election Day will apprisevoters of their rights and help resolve any perceivedirregularities."Voting is essential to democracy," he said.Still, he might sit out his first presidentialelection since 1960.The candidates, Ruben lamented, have ignored socialissues such as capital punishment and corporatewelfare.More important, he has grown weary of choosing betweentwo parties "beholden to the same corporateinterests."And he is angered that thirdparty candidate RalphNader, who won his vote in 2000, doesn't appear thisyear on the Ohio ballot.Barkley identified another option that would ensureher presence at the polls: "none of the above.""That," she said, "would be the best waste of my timeall year."