# The US midterm elections **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 16, 2014, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793 "2014-11-16T19:25:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/21 "2014-11-18T05:55:58Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And yet, elections are decided nonetheless. If we take as an assumption that individual votes are meaningless, then we arrive at the conclusion that aggregates of votes, and thus the entire election, are also meaningless. But clearly this is not true. Thus, our assumption, that individual votes are meaningless, is shown to be false. I’m not saying it’s worthless; I’m saying it’s infinitesimal. You have a non-zero chance of winning the lottery, too, but that doesn’t mean that playing is a productive use of your time. Along these lines, if the government were serious about increasing voting rates, it would serve snacks at the polling place. Heck, that’s why I give blood. > [@Velocity](#): > > Yes, one vote makes virtually no difference, but if 1 million voters abstain from voting as a result of this belief, it makes a huge difference. Not if the party memberships of the abstentions are proportional to the overall electorate. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/22 "2014-11-18T15:03:30Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And yet, elections are decided nonetheless. If we take as an assumption that individual votes are meaningless, then we arrive at the conclusion that aggregates of votes, and thus the entire election, are also meaningless. But clearly this is not true. Thus, our assumption, that individual votes are meaningless, is shown to be false. And lotteries are won every day. Still, buying a lottery ticket is not a rational decision. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/23 "2014-11-18T15:08:55Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > I don’t control a million votes. Or a 100 votes. Just one. But by voting, you might influence others to vote. That’s my motivation – that by voting, and encouraging people to vote, and talking about voting, and wearing the “I voted” button, I might influence others to vote if they wouldn’t have. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/24 "2014-11-18T15:15:28Z")
Don’t forget that _ **Voting is irrational!** _ Dopers know that spending $1 on a lottery ticket with 1 chance in 50,000 to win is “irrational” unless the prize is more than $50,000. Yet simple mathematics demonstrates that voting is more irrational than buying a lottery ticket! What is the cost of voting? Factoring in gasoline, waste of time, etc. the cost is probably much more than $1 but let’s call it $1 for simplicity. (We need to subtract from this any entertainment value, and the emotional value of fulfilling one’s “duty” but these can be considered “irrational” rewards.) Now, what is the value of voting? If a close friend or relative is running for a local office in a close race, a vote might be worthwhile, but in a more typical case there will be just a single close race you care about, probably for Senate or House. Take Colorado 2014 for example. The race for Senate was “close” but the chance a given vote would have made a difference can be shown to be 1 in 50,000 or less. To justify spending the $1, the value to you of swinging the race would have to be at least $50,000. How many Coloradans who wasted $1 of their time voting for Udall would have been willing to spend $50,000 if, in some hypothetical, that let them swing the election? > [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Not if the party memberships of the abstentions are proportional to the overall electorate. An unlikely assumption. This is one reason measures involving issues like gay rights find their way to the ballot – to affect turnout that will affect results on the issues that do matter to moneyed interests. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/25 "2014-11-18T15:16:38Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > But by voting, you might influence others to vote. How exactly? No one other than my wife knows (or cares) if I vote or not. > [@](#): > > That’s my motivation – that by voting, and encouraging people to vote, and talking about voting, and wearing the “I voted” button, I might influence others to vote if they wouldn’t have. I am glad people who don’t want to vote, or don’t care enough to vote don’t vote. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/26 "2014-11-18T15:19:36Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > How exactly? No one other than my wife knows (or cares) if I vote or not. That’s your choice. It’s also possible to talk about voting, encourage others to vote, and even go in groups to the polls. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/27 "2014-11-18T15:22:44Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > That’s your choice. It’s also possible to talk about voting, encourage others to vote, and even go in groups to the polls. Again, I really don’t want to encourage people who now don’t vote to vote. Low-information voters are the problem, not a boon. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/28 "2014-11-18T15:24:46Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Again, I really don’t want to encourage people who now don’t vote to vote. That’s your choice. I’m just disputing your “voting is irrational” statement – it can be entirely rational, even for things and candidates that may not be on the 50/50 line, because by voting (and other actions) one might get others to vote as well. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/29 "2014-11-18T15:31:45Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > That’s your choice. I’m just disputing your “voting is irrational” statement – it can be entirely rational, even for things and candidates that may not be on the 50/50 line, because by voting (and other actions) one might get others to vote as well. No, the voting itself is, in fact, irrational. “Other actions”, if they affect more votes, may be more rational - in close elections, if you affect 1,000 votes, that may decide the election. But YOUR act of voting itself is irrational. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/30 "2014-11-18T15:35:21Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > No, the voting itself is, in fact, irrational. “Other actions”, if they affect more votes, may be more rational - in close elections, if you affect 1,000 votes, that may decide the election. But YOUR act of voting itself is irrational. Not if my act of voting includes gathering others to vote with me, as an example. Further, since I’m such a bad liar, I won’t be able to convince others to vote unless I actually vote. So my act of voting is _entirely rational_ because without it, I will be less successful in encouraging others to vote. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/31 "2014-11-18T15:56:05Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Not if my act of voting includes gathering others to vote with me, as an example. Further, since I’m such a bad liar, I won’t be able to convince others to vote unless I actually vote. So my act of voting is _entirely rational_ because without it, I will be less successful in encouraging others to vote. Whatever gives you “warm fuzzies”. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/32 "2014-11-18T16:18:28Z")
> [@Terr](#): > > Whatever gives you “warm fuzzies”. Entirely rational “warm fuzzies”. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793/33 "2014-11-18T17:58:14Z")
I blame the grid lock. Basically it has become clear over the last several years that unless the Democrats control that house and have a filibuster proof majority of the senate, the Republicans will prevent any legislation that Obama might accept from being passed. Further unless the Democrats control that house and have a veto proof majority in the senate, Obama will veto any truly harmful Republican legislation. Neither of these scenarios have any chance of occurring. So not only does you vote not count much but the consequences of this election were largely moot, so you might as well stay at home and watch Netflix. The only motivated group are those who have been led to believe that Obama is a destructive force that can only be contained (and hopefully impeached) by the forces of righteousness embodied by the likes of Ted Cruz. Those people came out to vote. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-us-midterm-elections/704793.md?page=1)