How do we encourage voting?

The message in this space before and after elections is almost always consistent. Right before Election Day, we emphasize the importance of taking the time to cast an informed vote. Just as regularly, we find ourselves lamenting voter turnout after votes have been counted.

After the dust settled on Tuesday’s primary election, it was determined that less than one-third of the state’s registered voters decided the outcome. A paltry 31.72 percent took the time to cast their votes and finalize the list of candidates who advance to November’s general election ballot.

Participation in precincts around the Valley ranged mostly between the mid-20s and mid-30s percent. At the extremes, the Trapper Creek precinct came in at the bottom, with just 19.5 percent turnout. Voters in the Lazy Mountain precinct, meanwhile, posted the Mat-Su’s best turnout, with nearly 47 percent showing up to vote.

While we laud Lazy Mountain residents for setting the best example of democracy in action, we also think no one should consider it acceptable that less than half of voters show up at the polls.

Why would a majority of voters leave such important decisions to a minority segment of their neighbors? Theories abound, but solutions remain elusive. Surely, what has come to pass for business as usual in Juneau and Washington contributes to voter disgust and subsequent apathy.

But voters who choose to drop out forfeit an opportunity to hold elected officials properly accountable. Too often, the result is an entrenched status quo, where true problem-solving and real work in the interest of the state and its residents take a back seat to partisan maneuvering and political gamesmanship.

Colony High math teacher Bob Williams, an unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor, said if he’d been picked to head Alaska’s Division of Elections — the main duty of the lieutenant governor — he would have gone about increasing voter participation the same way he boosts his students’ interest in math. He said the secret is to make the process fun.

We have no doubt that Williams, a former state teacher of the year, could find a way to do this. And as a side note, we hope to see more of him in future campaigns. The positive energy and fresh ideas he brought to his run for lieutenant governor would be a breath of fresh air in the often stuffy, stale-aired halls of the Capitol.

But is it really the role of government to get people excited about voting? We believe the responsibility of voting belongs first and foremost with individual voters. The responsibility to vote, after all, is too precious and too hard-won to take for granted.

So how can we awaken a greater awareness among Alaskans about the importance of participating in their democracy? It’s an idea we will explore here over the next few weeks.

Join the conversation:

How can we increase Alaskans’ interest in participating in local government? Send your ideas to news@frontiersman.com or the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, 5751 E. Mayflower Court, Wasilla, 99654, or drop them off in person as the same address.