Why Americans Vote… and Why They Don't: The Surprising History of Voter Turnout in America

If you want to start an argument at the feed store, don't bring up religion or college football. Just ask, "Why don't people vote anymore?"

You'll hear everything from, "Folks are too busy," to, "Politicians are all the same." Before long, you'll have three experts, four opinions, and one fellow who's been complaining about elections since Jimmy Carter was in office.

The truth is, Americans have never voted quite as much as we remember, and sometimes they've voted a whole lot more than we imagine.

The grand champion of voter turnout wasn't some modern election with television ads and Facebook memes. It was 1876, when more than 82 percent of eligible voters showed up to choose between Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel Tilden. Politics back then was part county fair and part family feud. There were torchlight parades, marching bands, campaign songs, and enough political arguing to keep every front porch in America entertained.

Politics wasn't a sideline. It was a community event.

Then something changed.

Beginning in the Progressive Era, roughly from the 1890s through the 1930s, voter participation began a long decline. Reformers wanted to clean up corrupt political machines and stop vote buying. States adopted the secret ballot, required voter registration, and created new election rules. 

(The secret ballot also called the Australian ballot, means that no one else knows how you voted. Today, that seems perfectly normal, but before the late 1800s it wasn't.)

Before the Progressive Era, political parties actually printed their own colored ballots. A voter would walk up to the ballot box holding a Republican or Democratic ballot for everyone to see. Party bosses, employers, landlords, and even neighbors could watch how you voted. That made vote-buying, intimidation, and coercion much easier.

The reforms reduced corruption, but they also had an unintended consequence. Voting became less of a community affair and more of an individual responsibility that required extra steps and effort. Political parties no longer marched voters to the polls with brass bands and torchlight parades, and many Americans became less connected to politics.

For much of the twentieth century, presidential turnout hovered between 50 and 60 percent. Then came the election of 2020, when roughly two-thirds of eligible Americans cast a ballot, the highest participation rate in more than a century.

So why do people vote in some elections and stay home in others?

Researchers have been studying that question for decades, and several answers keep showing up.

First, people vote when they think the race is close. Nothing motivates a voter like believing his or her ballot may actually matter. If folks think the outcome is already decided, they'll suddenly remember the grass needs mowing or that the truck needs washing.

Second, people vote when emotions run high. Americans turn out in larger numbers when they are excited about a candidate, but they also vote when they're worried about the other side winning. When people believe the stakes are high, they tend to show up.

Third, education and income matter. People with higher levels of education and income generally vote more often, usually because they have more flexibility, more free time and fewer barriers to getting to the polls.

Age also plays a role. Young people traditionally vote less than older Americans. Most folks under thirty are busy building careers, paying bills, and figuring out why the check engine light came on again. Older Americans, meanwhile, have turned voting into a habit.

But perhaps the biggest factor of all is this: people vote when they believe their vote matters.

When citizens feel ignored, turnout falls. When they believe they have a voice and a stake in the outcome, turnout rises.

Rural America has historically shown relatively strong voter participation rates for a simple reason: politics often feels personal. In small towns, people are more likely to know the local candidates, see them at church or the grocery store, and understand how local decisions can affect everyday life.

An old-timer once told me, "I may not like any of 'em, but if I don't vote, I lose my right to complain."

And around here, giving up the right to complain would be downright un-American.

For Further Reading

• History Channel – "Why Americans Haven't Always Turned Out to Vote"https://www.history.com/articles/voter-turnout-presidential-elections
• Pew Research Center – Voting and voter participation researchhttps://www.pewresearch.org
• United States Elections Project – Historical voter turnout data and statisticshttps://www.electproject.org