finder,

The impetus for this thread came from something you mentioned in an earlier blog which I thought I'd start a new blog for. You mentioned how low voter turnout was in a general election.

Interestingly, our local turnout is usually better than the state or national average but having said that, lower voter turnout is a sympton of an unhealthy democracy. I did a little reading this afternoon and from the League of Womens Voter website found these criteria which are indicators of a healthy democracy. And they are:

• Voter turnout In a healthy democracy, citizens vote. Democracy is weakened and government is less accountable when people don't vote. Low voter turnout suggests that citizens no longer see the relevance of government to their lives and that they are choosing to withhold their consent.
• Campaign finance In a healthy democracy, citizens have more influence on public policy than do special interests. The campaign finance system is an indicator of the influence that special interests have over the legislative and election processes. It also is a gauge of the openness and fairness of the political system to new ideas and new faces.
• Civic education and knowledge In a healthy democracy, citizens understand how government works and how to make their voices heard. Citizens must have a basic level of knowledge and the skills to participate effectively. In a real sense, civic education and knowledge measure the capacity for self-government-the capacity of citizens to play an informed and active role in American democracy.
• Diversity of representation In a healthy democracy, elected officeholders reflect the diversity of the citizens they represent. Diversity of representation measures both how open the system is to women and minorities and how well the government represents the needs and concerns of all its citizens.
• Civic participation In a healthy democracy, citizens come together through civic institutions to resolve problems for the common good. Participation gives people a sense of belonging and ownership. Participation builds and draws on citizens' energy, ideas, understanding and skills to create better, healthier communities for the future.

Locally and nationally, I believe restoring health to the democratic process is probably one of the most important issues of the leaders we elect this year. We may individually have different ideas about how to reach a healthy democracy but on this I think we can all agree, the goal is to experience a healthy democracy.

Some of you know more about this subject than just the little amount of reading I've done. Does anyone have any other thoughts on what constitutes a healthy democracy?

Karen Lake