A Note About Political Non-Participation

There are many reasons someone may not vote or engage in electoral politics; in this section, we discuss how current explanations fail to fully address why many low-income and working-class people do not vote.

Logistical and Administrative Barriers

One common explanation for lower voter turnout among low-income and working-class people (and Black and other people of color across class positions) is logistical and administrative barriers. Among our 144 less politically-engaged interviewees, only 12 – less than 10% – told us that they have been kept from voting by the time it would take, inconvenient polling locations or hours, or problems with the registration process. This is still far too many, but 83 people – 58% of the people we spoke with who do not vote regularly – reported that it would be easy to vote if they wanted to, or explained that they had had no trouble voting in the past.

There is no question that voting should be as accessible as possible; no one should be kept from voting by early registration deadlines, long lines, or onerous ID requirements. But reducing barriers – such as shifting to all-mail voting or same-day registration – is not all that is needed; substantial income and racial inequalities in participation persist (and sometimes even increase) when registering and voting are most accessible. 3

Ignorance and Apathy

A frequent misconception about voter disengagement is that nonvoters do not know or do not care enough about politics. Yet our interviews found that most people do care deeply about their communities and are knowledgeable about many political issues. If they said they do not care about politics, it was usually because they feel politicians do not care about them. If they believed they do not know enough to vote, it was usually because they feel politicians are not speaking to them, or believe they cannot rely on media, campaign messaging, or political party membership to know whether a candidate is worth their vote.

Every single one of our less-engaged interviewees expressed care about the people around them, and all but two identified concerns about their communities and personal lives that are affected by electoral politics. Most make efforts outside electoral politics to improve the quality of life in their communities, whether through helping friends and neighbors, volunteering, or attending protests. They talked about how their communities are neglected by people in power, and shared their views and beliefs on abortion rights, the social safety net, and more.