Quote:
Originally Posted by Mothy
One difference betwen USA and Australia is that in Australia voting is compulsory - you are not allowed to sit on the fence or leave it to someone else.
Tim
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I've always found this feature of Australian politics interesting. You get fined if you don't vote, right?
How much is the fine?
So your voter turnout is much higher - but isn't the result a less informed vote? I mean, there must be a lot of people who have no idea who to vote for - but who just go and tick any box on the ballot just to avoid the fine.
So even though the vote is more broadly based - and therefore arguably more democratic - you have this completely random factor of votes cast just to avoid the fine.
What do you Aussies think about that?