November 14, 2014 3:14 PM

Stanford: Make Election Day a Holiday

From the Left: QR’s liberal columnist Jason Stanford says designating Election Day a national day off from work just makes sense

Apparently, you’re pretty busy. I’m a little surprised that you have time to read the paper, frankly. And you’re not alone. Only 36% of our countrymen bothered to vote in the midterm elections. A lot of people were busy that day.

Unless we are prepared to admit that control of Congress will be determined largely by non-voters, we need to take a fresh look at reinvigorating the basic currency of democracy—voting. And that’s exactly why Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders wants to make Election Day a national holiday.

Turnout in the midterm elections hasn’t been this low since 1942, and back then my grandmother was busy changing my now 72-year-old dad’s diaper. Grandpa Stanford was busy, too, fighting fascism in Europe. So if turnout was a little low in the middle of World War II, I’m willing to give the Greatest Generation a pass.

But a lot has happened since then. We lowered the voting age, passed the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, and, with the Motor Voter Law, made it easier to register to vote. The United States has systematically welcomed more and more Americans into the fold, and now what? Voting? Eh, who has time?

The complete column from Jason Stanford can be found in today’s R&D Department.

By Jason Stanford