Less Exclusion, More Engagement

Résumé du livre

Alberta's record low voter turnout in the 2008 election (40.6 percent) raised considerable concern about the state of democracy in the province. Although turnout rose to 54.4 percent in 2012, over the long-term, voting in Alberta is on a downward trend. This report uses public opinion data collected in 2008 and 2012 by the Population Research Laboratory at the University of Alberta to examine explanations for non-voting in Alberta in 2008, and to profile non-voters in both 2008 and 2012. Non-voters are profiled by gender, age, region (Calgary, Edmonton, and other), education, household income, home ownership, and immigrant status. Concern over voter turnout is not limited to Alberta. Declining turnout is a phenomenon found throughout Canada, both federally and provincially, and in countries throughout the industrialized world. This study compares the responses and demographic characteristics of non-voters in Alberta with what is known about non-voters elsewhere. Reasons for non-voting among Albertans are broadly reflective of the results of previous research. Chief among these explanations are apathy or indifference towards politics in general, or alienation specifically from politics in Alberta. The study also shows that lack of time or inhibiting structural factors (such as difficulty in establishing voter eligibility) contribute to non-voting. The demographic characteristics of Albertan non-voters are similar to those of non-voters in other jurisdictions. Non-voters are often younger, less educated, and more likely to be renters. Unlike in other jurisdictions, however, household income is not a predictor of voting in Alberta. The unusually high incomes earned by some younger and possibly less educated workers in Alberta may explain this finding.