To believe that people should have to pass a test to vote?

[ZanyWriter]

If you can’t understand basic political issues or policies, why should your vote count as much as someone who does? AIBU to think voting shouldn’t be a universal right?

🤦‍♀️

Oh dear. I think you’d fail that test, then, considering you’ve created this post.

Unfortunately an extremely sizable portion of the population are idiots, hence why the idiotic politicians are popular. It's democracy.

Who sets the test?

YABU. Everyone should get a vote. There are plenty of intelligent people who understand political issues but still vote for absolute twats.

I assume when you say they don’t understand, you mean they don’t vote for the same party as you do?

People have different political ideals, get over it.

Yep, as Fencehedge says, a lot of people are idiots.

Seriously, why should being stupid prevent you from voting?

The idea of democracy is it’s meant to be representative.

Just over 16% turned out to vote today just how few people would turn up if you put MORE barriers in

Today? Which vote?

I see you’ve enabled voting OP, do we have to pass a test to vote on your AIBU?

What questions would be on this test?
Surely it would create biases?
An uneducated lazy arse bigot should still have the right to vote just as much as anyone else.

I think this sort of works out in that educated people (including 'school of life) are more able to put their opinion across and are generally more politically active so have more sway.
Also we have a representative democracy so the voting on laws is done by MPs on our behalf.
Where this falls through is inappropriate referendums. A referendum on Brexit with years of misinformation in the media and then 'what is the EU?' trending on Google is not the right way to go about things.

I presume OP would like to use something like the Louisiana Literacy Test?

And who would set the test and decide what the right answers are?

The principle of democracy is that everyone gets a vote, even the idiots.

Better to crack down on lies on social media and support things like local journalism and fact checkers.

I've rolled my eyes so far back that now I look like a zombie.

A much better solution is to make sure voting changes nothing.

Do you not know what democracy is?

Deciding who can and can't vote would just return us to life before the Representation of the People Act 1918. It would create a class divide of voters and non-voters. Either you believe true democracy requires universal suffrage or you don't. If you don't, you are half way to dictatorship.

I think that voting should consist of a "which policy do you agree with" quiz, and you find out who you voted for after. And if a policy isn't supported by a majority, you have to go through extra steps to go ahead with it.

What sort of test? An IQ test?

so someone with learning difficulties shouldn’t have the right to have a say in policies that will directly affect them?

Well you wouldn't exactly pass with flying colours, would you OP? 😬

What questions would you ask?

I’d fail most general knowledge questions, tbh. And my geography is terrible.

That is called direct democracy. Switzerland has it to some degree. We have representative democracy, so we select the person who will represent us in those votes. Given how low voter turn out is for that, I think public voting for legislation would result in single digit turnout. People have work to go to etc. They can't be bothered.

No taxation without representation!

How does that work for all those non-UK citizens paying UK tax then ?