STATISTICS from the just-concluded local government elections reveal that only 38 per cent of eligible voters inked their fingers on November 12. Out of 570, 708 registered voters, it is estimated that only 208,000 citizens performed their civic duty.
In a country with a population of 800,000, this is damning for democracy. Low voter turnout ought to be undesirable and it certainly does not bode well for any free society. Be that as it may, we should proceed with caution when we draw conclusions of biblical proportions about the low voter turnout, at the recently concluded local government elections.

Some have proffered that it is an open revolt by the electorate, some say this reflects a disenchantment with the government, others have theorised that this means Guyanese have no interest in politics and above all, it has been said that youth voters, who make up the largest percentage of the Guyanese electorate, decided to stay from this year’s local government elections to make a political statement. There has been a sweeping indictment of our electoral system.

I have uncovered research on good authority that cautions about the uncertainty of democracy. Political scientists such as Christopher Achen and Larry Bartels would be the first to tell you, that voter behaviour is a very difficult thing to ascertain, let alone to pontificate. In their book, ‘Democracy for Realists: Why Elections Do Not Produce Responsive Government’, the argument is made: ‘elections outcomes…turn out to be largely random events from the viewpoint of democratic theory’. This conundrum is even more intense in a plural society such as Guyana, with 10 regions and labyrinthine demographic realities.

To assume that Guyanese have no interest in the governance of their affairs, based on the local government elections which have not been held in 22 years, is far-fetched at best. We have been cultured for two decades to grab our I.D. cards and report to the polling booth strictly every five years. This midterm voting, as it were, is a relatively new phenomenon. Added to this, global voter apathy is at an all-time low and scholars remain divided on the reason for this development. They attribute this to economic, technological, institutional, social and demographic factors. If national elections globally struggle to get the full attention of the populace, how can we expect local government elections to motivate them to exercise their franchise? Suggesting this was a revolt of the electorate, is romantic at best.

Secondly, assuming that a low turnout is disenchantment with the status quo is rash, and especially in light of the fact that 362,708 voters did not show up to vote, it is clearly subject to the aforementioned electoral culture. Nobody can safely claim a mandate when this occurs, this cannot be safely construed as the will of the people. Conversely, low voter turnout, according some scholars, could also mean that people are satisfied with the state of affairs and they see no need to send any message via the ballot box.

The youth voters have come in for stinging criticisms. Some have remarked that young voters have no interest in politics and issues of the day. These are wild and broad conclusions with zero consideration for demographics, such as rural and urban, rich and poor, uneducated and educated and other factors that guide the behaviour of voters. As far as my knowledge serves me, these numbers have not been placed under the competent microscope to be subject to such consequential interpretations.

It is my carefully considered view, the results of the 2018 local government elections need to be placed under proper psephological analysis, before we draw such sweeping national inferences about Guyanese voters.