The real question is what type of people you are getting to vote when people don't care enough to vote. It is clear that it doesn't pay to vote in a purely economic context. Usually economists assume some altruism on the part of those who vote. So the implication is that the fine will force non-altruistic to vote. Also get people who are less informed on the issues. From Australia:
The commission will issue a notice to all non-voters requesting that they either provide a reason for their failure to vote or pay penalties.
Australia's compulsory voting system requires citizens show up at their polling stations on Election Day. Around 14 million electors took part in a mandatory vote in the pacific nation on Saturday.
The commission says if apparent non-voter cannot provide a valid reason within three weeks, then legally they are obliged to pay a 20-dollar fine.
Prosecution proceedings may be instigated against those violators who decline to pay the penalty.
If the matter is dealt with in court and the person is found guilty, they may be fined up to $50 plus court expenses.
However, penalties for failing to vote are not always strictly enforced.
This is while early vote counting in Australia suggests that the country could be heading for a hung parliament in one of the most closely contested general elections in years. . . .
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- After seeing this, I do think that we need some type of intelligence test for votersThese women don't even know who the Speaker of the House is let alone what her views are.
Australia to fine citizens who didn't vote in Saturday's election
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