Dear Editor,
Vermont prides itself on its community-based participatory democracy. But is this still the case?
When only a handful of people show up at Town Meeting Days and when only 15% of registered voters bother to vote in the summer primaries, it is a real concern. Supposedly instituting six weeks of early voting was supposed to help, but perhaps it has had the opposite effect, atomizing the process and robbing election day of much of its community drama and import.
Every incumbent in the Vermont Senate won their primaries — despite widespread public anger at skyrocketing property taxes and health insurance premiums.
And thus a vicious cycle is created — the overwhelming incumbent success discourages legitimate challengers, which in turn further increases the power of incumbency. At some point, voters begin to feel that their votes will not really make a difference, and voting numbers will continue to decrease.
There may be yet one more subtle reason for voter apathy, and that is that politicians in Vermont are strongly advised not to conduct “negative” campaigning, and Vermont elections are supposed to be congenial and polite affairs. This is nice — but boring to many voters. There are times when sharp disagreements are legitimate and prompt important debates on the issues affecting us all.
Louis Meyers
Shelburne
Editor’s note: Louis Meyers was a candidate in the Democratic primary for the Chittenden Southeast Senate district this year.
