On Voters Turnout

The Netherlands is amidst a turbulent election, where a progressive party and a far-right party are headed to have the same amount of seats in the parliament. And this is with around 17% of the votes each, it’s not even a big majority. Nevertheless, I want to focus on voter turnout.

The turnout of this elections is expected to be around 78%. The postal votes from abroad have not yet been counted, and therefore the turnout is not yet definitive. In either case, I find it to be a fantastic high number. Yes, it still means that a fifth of the country has not casted their vote. But it doesn’t mean it isn’t high.

For comparison, Portugal’s national elections usually have a turnout below 60%. The only year I “fully” participated in the parliamentary elections - and with “fully” I mean that my vote actually had some proportional voice because I did not live abroad - the turnout was just 48%. Forty-eight! What the actual… f. That’s terrible.

How come more than half of the population does not go voting? Well, after comparing how elections in Portugal and in The Netherlands work, I have some ideas. In The Netherlands, it is so much easier and troublesome to cast one’s vote. Let’s compare it.

Where to vote: in The Netherlands, you’re allowed to vote in any polling station within your own municipality. If you know you will be at a different municipality, you can arrange beforehand to vote there.

In Portugal, you must vote at your specific polling station within your municipality. Not in any polling station, only at your polling station. That is not flexible. You can also arrange to vote before the actual Election Day in certain cases.

In addition, in The Netherlands there is about 1 polling station per 1300 voters. In Portugal, I don’t have the data for it, but I can say that there’s much less polling stations. You’ll often also see queues, while in the Netherlands it’s usually quite fast. In The Netherlands there’s one at literally every corner, including train stations.

When to vote: in The Netherlands, elections take place on a Wednesday between 7:30 and 21:00. The polling stations are open for a period of 13 hours and 30 minutes. In contrast, Portuguese elections always take place on a Sunday between 8:00 and 19:00. That’s 3 hours and 30 minutes less time that you’re able to cast your vote.

Some people will say: but wouldn’t voting on a weekday lead to a lower turnout, since people need to work? Well, if you combine how long the stations are open and the fact that you’re allowed to vote in every corner of your municipality, no. People do go vote.

Delegation of vote: in The Netherlands, everyone that is allowed to vote gets a voting pass that they need to bring to the polling station to vote. If you want to delegate your vote, you just need to fill the back of said voting pass, sign it, and give it to the person that you’re delegating your vote to.

This allows a lot of people to vote, that would otherwise not be able to: sick people, ill people, people with less mobility, people that are on vacation, people that for some reason cannot vote that day, etc.

In Portugal, your ID card is your voting pass. I could not even find information about delegating your vote, only voting earlier. So, if it is even possible, it’s probably very hard, and virtually never happens. This means that a lot of people from the groups I mentioned before won’t vote, it’s just too hard.

These are all factors that I think make it so much easier to vote in the Netherlands, and that if they were implemented in Portugal, the voters turnout would also increase. The Netherlands facilitates voting by doing it during a workday, letting you vote anywhere within your municipality, even on your own to or back to work, with extended voting times.

Delegation also makes it accessible to groups of people that would otherwise not vote. Portugal is so sparse, many people need a car to vote, and many people just have difficulty voting, especially elderly and ill people. Making the voting process more accessible is important.

Still want to say: yes, I think 78% is high, but it’s still one fifth of people not voting. Higher is better, and we should strive for it!