METROPOLIS, IL – State Representative Patrick Windhorst serves as the House Republican Floor Leader and as the Republican Ranking Member and Spokesman on the House Ethics & Elections Committee. This week, during a House Ethics & Elections subject matter hearing, Rep. Windhorst spoke out against legislation that would require all eligible Illinois citizens to vote in every election, HB 2718, which would create the “Facilitate Voting for All” Act.
“There are some serious questions about what the idea of compulsory voting would mean,” Windhorst said. “We see in other countries penalties that range from listing the names of people who choose not to vote in some public space or online, to financial penalties for people who don’t vote. Part of our electoral process includes the right of people not to engage. We have the right to free speech, and we also have the right not to speak.”
Windhorst noted that he wants citizens engaged in the political process, but warned that a slippery slope could be ahead if a compulsory voting avenue is pursued.
“There are those who, for one reason or another, choose not to engage in the political process, even though we would like to encourage everyone to be informed and to participate in our democratic process,” Windhorst said. “When we move from encouraging and convincing people to vote to making it illegal when eligible citizens choose not to vote, I believe we have gone too far. I oppose this measure and will vote against it if it advances further in the legislative process.”
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