Informational Articals - Voting -
Voting is one of the freedoms we have in this country as it is a democracy. Some people don’t think voting makes any difference but the outcomes of many elections on local, state, and Federal levels have been influences one way or another by only a couple of votes. If you don’t take the time to vote then you really have no right to complain about the outcome of such events.
Voting was introduced with the Declaration of Independence in 1776. At that time any white male over the age of 21 who was part of the Protestant religion could vote. This changed in 1787 to include the stipulation that they white males had to own property in order to be able to vote. This meant only the upper class white males were able to vote during this period of time.
By 1830 various political parties were being formed. More people wanted to vote and many states waived the religious provision as well as the stipulation for owning property. Women and African Americans continually fought for their right to vote as well. In 1868 African American males were given the right to vote under the 14th Amendment. Women in Wyoming were allowed to vote in 1890 and Nationwide in 1920.
Today anyone who is a legal resident of the United States and who is 18 years of age or older is able to register to vote. You have the right to vote at specified times and locations after you have been introduced to the various pieces of information on the subjects and the candidates. You have the right for your voting choices to be kept private. There are a variety of different methods used to count votes and to ensure that a miscount doesn’t take place.
There have been plenty of controversies throughout history when it comes to the results of voting. In 2004 the election for the President of the United States of America was at the heat of such voting issues. There are some significant discreprencies in the number of votes compared to the total number of voters that resulted in an investigation in the states of Ohio and Florida. Some people believe these mistakes were part of a detailed fraud plot to influence the outcome.
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