Councillors want initiatives to tackle voter apathy

“This is a very important issue and one that needs to be taken seriously.”

So remarked Cllr Clifford Kelly (FF) during this month’s meeting of Cavan County Council where members discussed the low turnout in the recently held Local Elections.

The matter arose on foot of a notice of motion by Cllr Kelly who called on the Department of the Environment to provide additional publicity at election time thus encouraging more people to come out and vote.

“In some countries, if people don’t vote, they are fined,” he continued. “I’m not suggesting we do that here but there needs to be more publicity around the importance of coming out to cast your vote. I was shocked by the number of people who didn’t vote in the Local Elections, which is a vital part of democracy. I would encourage the Department to run a publicity campaign for all elections going forward.”

Cllr Kelly’s party colleague, Cllr John Paul Feeley, offered his support to the motion. “It is amazing to see the amount of people who don’t bother to turn out on voting day,” he remarked.

“It’s very disheartening and disappointing to see that and there are things that we can do to improve the situation.

“With regard to posters, I know there are people who wouldn’t know there was an election were it not for posters. We also need to look at the location of our polling stations and at the suitability of the buildings that are being used. We need to increase access. It is in the remit of the Department to encourage greater participation.”

Cllr Trevor Smith (FG) then pointed to a turnout as low as 30% in some areas following last June’s Local Elections. “That indicates to me that something is wrong somewhere,” he continued before adding that he fully supported the effort to increase greater participation.

Cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council, Cllr T.P. O’Reiilly (FG) told those gathered that it was his belief that education on democracy, local government and voting in elections should begin in schools

“Children need to learn about the process and be shown how to vote,” he added. “Transition Year would probably be a really good place to start on this.”

The meeting then heard that the EU has run campaigns in schools that encourage youngsters to participate in projects that created awareness around the importance of voting but the initiatives are no longer as prominent as they were.

Cllr Aine Smith (FF) also pointed out that the Civic, Social and Political Education (CSPE) subject that was introduced a number of years ago to the Junior Cert cycle now includes numerous modules and democracy and local government but they are not always chosen by a teacher to cover. “This,” she added, “is impacting also.”

Cllr Kelly’s motion received unanimous support and a letter reflecting members' views will be sent to the Department of the Environment in due course.