One often hears people stating: 'What is the point of voting? It doesn't change anything.'

Let us turn this around: 'What is the point of not voting, does it change anything?'

I feel that an individual choosing not to vote will have very little effect on anything, other than to leave the door wide open for those who you do not want to win - and for those who promote ideas and make decisions that you do not feel represent you.

Therefore, it is important that you cast your vote.

However, while I believe that we should keep voting, we must acknowledge that there is a problem with our system.

Reflecting on the past, reformers and campaigners pressed for more extensive parliamentary reform throughout the 19th century with demands for universal suffrage, annual parliaments, and voting by secret ballot.

At a time when very few people had the right to vote, achieving that right in a representative democratic system became a focus that inspired people to fight long and hard.

Universal suffrage, for all over 21, did not arrive until 1928 with voting rights for women.

Recently, the fight for the vote goes on with 16-year-olds demanding the right to have a say over critical issues that affect their future, such as education, health, and the economy, and in some parts of the country, Scotland and Wales, this has been achieved.

All these changes have not come about by passivity but by protests, demonstrations, and political dialogue and pressure on the powers that be.

Yet, despite this historical context, the figures for the last County Council elections in East Devon show that the turnout for voting was only 31% in the Exmouth division and 38% in the Exmouth and Budleigh Salterton division.

This raises questions about why people are not more engaged with our democratic system in the 21st century.

Looking at the voting process, the present system of first-past-the-post ensures that the winner takes all the power, even though it is often the case that the majority have voted against the winning candidate.

People in many areas feel that their vote has never counted when the same people get elected or the same party stays in power for years, and this breeds apathy and a sense that 'nothing can change, so why bother?'

If our voting system loses its legitimacy, then this has important consequences for our democracy, and begs the question of how we are doing democracy.

How do we stand up against the tyranny of control that can be exerted through privilege and wealth? How do we empower the individual and communities and help them thrive and be sustainable for the future?

How do we organise our system to ensure that we listen and take account of a plurality of views and achieve consensus, or work through differences in a fair, just, and informed way, to help avoid the devastating consequences of full-on escalated conflict, and much more?

Democracy is more than just voting, and if we leave it at just voting, then we risk eroding away the essential elements that make the system work for us.

We need to keep blowing on the flame to keep it burning brightly. Democracy is not something that just happens; we must work at it.

Our democratic system goes to the heart of how we are living our lives and if people are not engaging, for whatever reason, we need to re-examine the changes that are needed to make that happen.

This means going back to basics, to educate to ensure that people know what the democratic system is meant to do and how it works, and to re-inject a sense of justice and fair play that energises people to participate because they understand that it is important for their own wellbeing, and that of the community, in which they live.

We must hone our democratic processes and institutions, which includes the media, to make them fit for the age in which we live.

Many people advocate a democratic system that reflects the pluralism of the 21st century and that invigorates enthusiasm and active citizenship by injecting more deliberative elements into the system and meaningful ways to consult and engage citizens between formal elections.

As regards change to our election process, many argue that the best form of proportional representation will give more sound representation than our outdated 19th century first-past-the-post system.

So do not sacrifice the endeavours of those in the past in gaining your right to vote by not using it, and make sure that you vote on 6 May.

To do so will set a marker to ensure that the vital principle of having a vote is preserved in our political process, and that it is understood as a way for the individual to engage in that process as a peaceful route to influence and change policies that are being pursued on their behalf.

However, we must also understand that there is much more to be done to improve our democratic system to one that defends and ensures the principle of a society that cares for everyone.

- Keith Edwards, Labour Candidate for Devon County Council Election in Exmouth & Budleigh Salterton Coastal Division

The full list of candidates for Exmouth & Budleigh Salterton Coastal Division can be found here on the Devon County Council website.

Editor's note

Nub News is politically impartial and does not endorse any views expressed in opinion pieces.

Don't forget to sign up to our newsletter below!

You can submit your own news straight to Exmouth Nub News by using the 'Nub It' button on our home page. This can also be done for events on our What's On page and businesses, groups and organisations on our Local Listings page, also by using the 'Nub It' button.

Please like and follow our online newspaper on your favourite social media channel. You can find us on Facebook and Twitter.