Why do People Vote for Extremist Parties?

What is considered as extreme by one person in a society may vary considerably to what another person in a different society considers extreme. However, in general terms, extremist political parties are very dogmatic and unwavering in their beliefs and are prepared to use whatever measures they have at their disposal to achieve their objectives. Political extremism is often viewed in terms of left and right, with leftist extremists wanting a complete overhaul of the political system and redistribution of wealth to ensure equality. Right-wing extremists are usually considered to be those with racist or nationalistic tendencies. However, at either end of the spectrum there are various parties with their own contradictions and nuances.

Generally, though, extremist parties offer a simple message, which ordinary people can understand and relate to. If you’ve just lost your job, because the economy is in a terrible state, and it is going to be hard for you to find work again, of course you’re going to look for someone to blame. If the government has been making decisions that have had a detrimental impact on your life, then you’re hardly likely to trust the same politicians to suddenly start making decisions that work in your favour. Instead, you may listen to minority voices – those who perhaps do not have mainstream coverage, because they are considered to be ‘extreme’.

It is understandable that when people feel disillusioned with the current system, they turn elsewhere, especially when they feel hopeless and as if they are unable to change the situation. Extremist parties on the right may focus their energies on blaming immigrants for taking away the jobs of native inhabitants, and when you’re trying to find work and end up having to compete against other job seekers who are not local, you may well feel annoyed and angry about the situation.

Voting for a right-wing extremist party gives you an opportunity to express this frustration and let those in power know how you feel. Extreme parties on the left tend not to attack immigrants themselves, but rather blame the system for increasing the wealth divide, so that the rich get richer and the poor, poorer.
If your political system has proportional representation, then your vote can actually make a difference to the composition of a government. If you are fed up with the usual, mainstream politicians who are constantly performing a balancing act, trying to keep people from all sides happy in order not to offend anyone and thus lose votes, you might want things to be shaken up a bit. At least with extremist parties, you know what you’re getting; or, at least, that is how it seems!

However people choose to vote, it is often the case that if they are fed up with the same-old politicians pedalling the same old sound bites, they may be tempted to look further afield. Extremist parties usually peddle a simple message that can catch on quickly amongst the frustrated, disillusioned and ignorant. If they have a charismatic leader, this can also help their chances, but, in most cases, extremist parties remain on the fringes. However, this often makes mainstream politicians complacent, which is when the situation could become more serious.

Why do People Choose Not to Vote?

People each have their own reasons for not voting. Some people are not registered to vote; some people simply cannot be bothered to; some people don’t see the point and believe their vote counts for nothing. In the UK, voter turnout in general elections used to be much higher than it is today. In the 2010 election, 65.1 per cent of the population turned out, compared to 83.9 per cent in 1950. This possibly reflects a growing disillusionment with politics and politicians; perhaps it also reflects a changing society – one where people are less engaged with the issues of the day.

Of course, there are a variety of different political systems and this can influence whether people turn out to vote or not. In a first-past-the-post system, there may seem less reason to vote when there isn’t that much choice. In the UK, this is the very system that is in place and, usually, the outcome is that either Labour or the Conservatives end up in power. The 2010 election threw up an unusual result in that there was a hung parliament and a coalition was created between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives. Usually, though, there is a clear-cut ‘winner’ and if you want to vote for a minority party it almost seems to be a waste of time.

There are other systems that use some kind of proportional representation, so that even votes for a minority party count, as votes for them lead to representation in the national legislature. Voter turnout in countries with this kind of system tends to be higher, whether it’s because people are more interested in the issues or they simply believe that their vote counts for something and do not want to waste it. Even then, there are people who still choose not to vote, but it certainly seems that people are politically literate enough to realise that not voting could lead to a party that they do not want in power to end up in charge of the country.

There are other reasons why people decide not to vote besides laziness or disillusionment; for some people there isn’t the option to vote. In countries where war is prevalent or where there is a threat of violence, some people may decide it is just not worth the risk to vote, especially if the outcome of an election is likely to be predetermined and manipulated, anyway. People in safe, Western countries probably take for granted their right to vote, but not everyone is so lucky. The fight for suffrage was fought in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the West, but in some countries, universal suffrage is still far from being achieved, as is the case in Saudi Arabia. Although there are those who maintain people should vote whatever the situation, surely it is more important that people have the option to vote in the first place.