Quote

As I said, I spent most of my adult life thinking I didn't have a vote, and therefore that what I thought didn't matter.

To vote is like the payment of a debt, a duty never to be neglected, if its performance is possible.

The way people imagine their political leaders is, like it or not, an important factor in how they decide to vote and, indeed, whether they vote at all.

Remember, your vote is not a wasted vote. Vote with your heart and think about the future generations the next time you vote.

So few people vote these days, and I think it's partly because they don't feel like the institution really means anything to them. If you want them to vote, give them opportunities to do something else other than vote, to help.

During my campaign, people of my age and younger said consistently that they would not vote because their votes simply no longer matter and because no government or member of Parliament cared a whit about their problems and their striving for employment.

One of the promises I made when I ran was, I'll never vote with my reelection in mind.

I've been ostracized before in legislative bodies for voting against the majority. That doesn't bother me.

People aren't necessarily as concerned with how you vote as long as they feel they have a voice. If you can cross that basic threshold - that is, when a voter knows you're willing to listen to them and that you care about their lives - then that's most of what you need to get their vote. It's not your voting record.

Voting has proliferated in the United States, and it has reached a point where there is now almost one vote available per citizen over the age of eighteen.