Voting Rights and Responsibilities

I have been working to get signatures for my ballot petition in May/June and was amazed by the number of folks who are not registered to vote and/or do not vote. Some were unaware of how or where to register, others have moved or gotten married and didn’t know how to go about updating their voter information. Many told me that they feel their vote is unimportant, that our voting system has become corrupted by folks who vote multiple times and that election officials manipulate the results. One fellow told me he had stopped voting because the “Electoral College” was unfair to Vermonters.

Every time I come across a fellow Vermonter who doesn’t vote, I always react by telling the person that their vote is important –every vote is important and does count. Now I understand that there is some corruption within the voting process– there are some who have registered more than once and that there are instances of fraudulent activity within the voting process, even here in Vermont. The best medicine to overcome these “ills” is for every honest person to register and to vote. The overwhelming participation by honest people in both voting and participating in the voting process as voting assistants dilutes and reduces the consequences of any fraud or corruption that does exist.

Registering to Vote - In Vermont, registering to vote is a simple process managed by the local town (or city) clerk’s office and administered by the Secretary of State’s Office. There is a one page voter registration form, officially called the “Application for Addition to the (voter) Checklist” which the clerks obtain from the Secretary of State’s office. All of the issues of registering or reregistering can be resolved by filling out and filing this form.

When you go to register, you will need to have following information: 1- Vermont Driver’s License or a “PID” Personal ID issued by the DMV (if you have neither you may be able to use your Social Security Number), 2 - Your mailing address and the address of your “principal dwelling” (your physical address) and 3 - where and when you were born. You will need to answer several basic questions about your citizenship and residence, no big test and nothing complicated, I promise you!

If you are a new voter or have not previously voted in Vermont, you will be asked to take the ”Freeman’s Oath” (Voter’s Oath) stating that:

Vermont’s Freeman’s Oath

“You solemnly swear, or affirm, that whenever you give your vote or suffrage, touching any matter that concerns the State of Vermont, you will do it so as in your conscience you shall judge will most conduce to the best interest of the same, as established by the Constitution, without fear or favor of any person.” (from the Vermont Constitution)

The oath may be administered by your Town Clerk, a Justice of the Peace, a Commissioned Military Officer or any citizen over the age of 18.

As you can see, in the oath, as a voter you have a responsibility to inform yourself about the people and questions (for referendums) you are voting on. These are things that should be important to you since they affect you and your neighbors. Being a voter comes with the responsibility to be an informed citizen – Rights and Responsibility are always connected.

The Electoral College - As to the unfairness of the Electoral College; this special institution and its process is related only to the election of the President and Vice-President of the United States as specified in the U.S. Constitution. The process, which is largely ceremonial today, was designed by the Framers of the Constitution to protect the country from foreign and domestic intrigue by distancing the selection of the President (and Vice President) from the vagaries of a direct majority vote. Through the Electoral College process both the citizens and the States, in their corporate capacity, were represented in the selection process. The number of “Electoral” votes each state is assigned is a combination of the number of Senators and Representatives sent to Congress. Each state is assigned two Senators, thus each State has equal representation – small states like Delaware and Vermont have an equal voice in the Senate with the largest states like California and Texas. Each state is assigned a number of representatives in the House of Representatives proportional to part of the nation’s population, with a guarantee of at least one representative – it is here that the citizens are represented equally. In the House of Representatives; small states like Vermont and Delaware are allowed only the guaranteed minimum of one representative because of their small population, while the largest states like California and Texas are assigned far more based on their larger population - 53 and 36 respectively. The total Electoral Votes for each state is a combination of the number of Senators and Representatives assigned to each state giving Vermont 3 Electoral Votes and California, 55. For Vermonters, the Electoral College gives us a greater voice in the presidential elections then we would have if the election was based solely on a popular vote. In the Electoral College we are allocated 3 votes out of a total of 538 our votes represents a .55% influence, while an election based on population alone would result in Vermont having only a .198%, influence based on Vermont’s population of 626,630 as a percentage of the national population of 316,128,839. My answer to the fellow who said that the Electoral College was unfair since it reduced his “voice” in the election was to tell him that the exact opposite was true. Through the process; Vermonters are given over twice the “voice” in the election, slightly over .55% of the Electoral Vote, however in a strict popular vote – Vermonter’s influence would be less than .2% of the Popular Vote.

In 2011, the Vermont Legislature passed and Governor Shumlin signed into law a provision that will deny Vermonters their full advantage under the Electoral College by joining the “National Popular Vote Interstate Compact” (Vermont Title 17, Chapter 58) an agreement to pool participating state Electoral Votes and assign them to the candidate who receives the majority of the national Popular Vote.

Conclusion - It is important for every Vermonter to become a registered voter. Despite the frustrations some feel by watching politicians make unsound decisions; it is only by getting involved in the political process and, most importantly, voting that there is any chance of favorably changing the course of our government. Because we live in a representative democracy, we elect fellow citizens to make important decisions on our behalf both in Montpelier and Washington, it is important that those we elect will make decisions that represent our needs. Each of our votes does count and when we select Legislators and State Officials who understand and agree with our beliefs and expectations, then we will see our government doing the “right things.”