Should the law require people to vote in general elections?

Stance: Against compulsory voting — the law should not require people to vote.

Author's own note: see essay plan in GoodNotes from Lucas lesson notes.

Definitions

• The law require: legal compulsion backed by sanction (e.g., fines in Australia).
• Vote: participation in the formal electoral process, not merely attendance.
• General elections: the cornerstone democratic moment determining political authority.
• Require vs encourage: distinction between civic duty (normative) and legal obligation (coercive).

Assumptions under challenge

1. That participation can be meaningfully increased by compulsion without corroding democratic legitimacy.
2. That coercion to vote enhances, rather than undermines, liberty and autonomy.
3. That abstention is apathy, rather than a deliberate moral or political choice.

Point 1 — Autonomy and Negative Freedom

Distinctness: This is about the individual's liberty; later points deal with democracy's legitimacy and practicalities.