Apathy. You have to remember that Texas has been a Conservative state for munch longer than it's been a red state, as the Democrats of the bygone era were also Conservatives. So, voter oppression has been happening here while Conservatives win for more than a century. So, I think within many communities it's more than just apathy, it's generational apathy and the belief that things just can't change.
i can only speak for my own county, being tarrant, but i believe the our abysmally low voter turnout is due in the part to the ineffectiveness of the tarrant county democratic party and their seeming ambivalence in finding, supporting or endorsing potential candidates. i’m an avid voter, but i can understand why many may feel less than motivated to vote - especially when their ballot doesn’t have one single party member TO vote for. mind you, this scenario is specific to municipal elections, yet this very situation occurred in may of this year where an inexcusable number of seats went unopposed, all having one or several republican options, while potential D candidates were noticeably absent.
i have many “issues” with our county’s democratic party, but my biggest concern is that they simply don’t care enough to do the dirty, difficult work required re candidate recruitment. many who do decide to run are often overly familiar with the campaign process, having unsuccessfully done so several times before.
i’m aware that this doesn’t explain the why behind low general election turnout, but i genuinely believe that all change starts at the local level, and the more democratic candidates we have to challenge the many seats that usually go unopposed, the more galvanized individuals will become!
the simple fact is this ~ having people you WANT to vote for gets you to the polling place. but when there isn’t one person willing to represent and fight for our progressive principles the “why even bother” mentality takes over... and who can blame anyone for feeling or thinking this way?!
What are your thoughts about why so many people fail to vote in Texas besides the ineffectiveness of the Texas Democratic party?
Apathy. You have to remember that Texas has been a Conservative state for munch longer than it's been a red state, as the Democrats of the bygone era were also Conservatives. So, voter oppression has been happening here while Conservatives win for more than a century. So, I think within many communities it's more than just apathy, it's generational apathy and the belief that things just can't change.
i can only speak for my own county, being tarrant, but i believe the our abysmally low voter turnout is due in the part to the ineffectiveness of the tarrant county democratic party and their seeming ambivalence in finding, supporting or endorsing potential candidates. i’m an avid voter, but i can understand why many may feel less than motivated to vote - especially when their ballot doesn’t have one single party member TO vote for. mind you, this scenario is specific to municipal elections, yet this very situation occurred in may of this year where an inexcusable number of seats went unopposed, all having one or several republican options, while potential D candidates were noticeably absent.
i have many “issues” with our county’s democratic party, but my biggest concern is that they simply don’t care enough to do the dirty, difficult work required re candidate recruitment. many who do decide to run are often overly familiar with the campaign process, having unsuccessfully done so several times before.
i’m aware that this doesn’t explain the why behind low general election turnout, but i genuinely believe that all change starts at the local level, and the more democratic candidates we have to challenge the many seats that usually go unopposed, the more galvanized individuals will become!
the simple fact is this ~ having people you WANT to vote for gets you to the polling place. but when there isn’t one person willing to represent and fight for our progressive principles the “why even bother” mentality takes over... and who can blame anyone for feeling or thinking this way?!