Is it sinful to not vote in a primary?

[Bookcat]

I have established that it is the Church’s teaching that we have an obligation to vote.

Now can it be that this is not in each and every election…perhaps…it would be a good dubium to send in to Rome…or each and every office…yes as was noted by the Catholic Answers Apologist…

But we do have an obligation to vote and it our participation in public life has been more and more emphasized by recent documents and other forms of address…even by Pope Benedict XVI.

We must be leaven in our society and work to inform it with the Gospel.
Voting is one way we do this.

 

[mchale]

The United States is not a democracy, it’s a constitutional republic in which we elect representatives. There’s a huge difference. Democracy is rule by majority, which is what Rome had during its downfall when the mob got its demanded bread and circus. A republic is a state that is ruled by law. In America, the US Constitution is “the supreme law of the land”.

I didn’t mean to go off topic, but that’s an extremely important point that many Americans have forgotten due to being brainwashed to think that the US is a democracy.

Ok, this is going to sound nitpicky, but, Rome, at least by the time it had expanded beyond being a city state, was not a democracy. Traditionally, Rome is considered to have had three governments in Antiquity. The first was the Monarchy, which was over thrown and replaced by the Roman Republic (In fact Republic comes to us more or less directly from the Latin Res Publica which roughly translates as Public Matters) and finally the Roman Empire.

Perhaps you are thinking of Athens, which was a direct democracy (At least if you were a male citizen) – though bread and circuses would not apply since that was how the Roman government, both under the Republic and the Empire kept the masses quiet.

Ultimately, the modern definition of republic is kind of loose. Essentially almost any state without a monarch can and has called itself a republic. Having rule of law and/or a constitution does not necessarily qualify you to be a Republic (You can have constitutional monarchies where the Monarch is subject to the Constitution and by definition, a monarchy is not a republic).

As a result, the most correct definition of the United States Government is a “Representative Democracy”.

Now, so I won’t have this post completely off topic.

I would say that exercising the right to vote is an obligation, but not necessarily an obligation to exercise it at every opportunity. If you honestly don’t see a difference between two candidates in a primary, or if you don’t belong to a particular party (Which is required in many states), then you are not under a particular obligation.

–
Bill

 

[jegow]

With the CA primaries today I thought I’d ask the question.

Is it considered a sin and if so would it be a mortal sin for a Catholic to not vote??

Thanks
Javier

I would not go so far to call it a mortal sin but I would say that it can be sinful. I have met a number of people in the parish that once they found out I voted for our primaries that told me I wasted my time. Some people think that these votes don’t matter which is a shame because they do.

The person who refuses to get involved and actually vote is displaying negligence - and it can be a sin sin of omition because of what they are not doing. I believe that we as Christian or Catholic citizens have a moral responsibility to do everything to make a our country the best possible place it can be. Those people who don’t vote or don’t do their homework before they vote unfortunately act as though they could care less. Which is probably the case.

Hope that helps.

 

[Erich]

Then there are the folks who say, “I never vote in the primaries, I just vote in the general elections” – and in November complain that there are no good choices on the ballot.

As has been said above, the primaries are when you help decide who your party’s nominee will be in November. And in some races, the primaries are the only time one may even get a choice (i.e. if my party has a contested primary in some race for which the opposing party does not field a candidate, the winner of the primary will be the only name on the ballot in November… so I have to have voted in the primary in order to have a choice).

I also agree that it is important to make an informed choice. I get so annoyed at folks who say, “it doesn’t matter who you vote for, just vote.” Yes it does matter who you vote for! 2008 is a perfect example.

 

[Erich]

or if you don’t belong to a particular party (Which is required in many states)

It *ought *to be required in **all **states.

Freedom of association is the individual right to come together with other individuals and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests. Where’s the “common interest” in a Democrat voting in a Republican primary (or vice versa)?

BTW… related to that is the timing of each state’s primary (particularly in a presidential election year). Nearly a quarter of “red” states have their Democratic primary on or before Super Tuesday (and nearly a quarter of “blue” states have their Republican primary on or before Super Tuesday). This gives voters in “red” states a disproportionate share in choosing the Democratic nominee for President, and voters in “blue” states a disproportionate share in choosing the Republican nominee for President – particularly if the states in question do not require a show of party affiliation to vote in a particular party’s primary. That, more than anything else, is how we ended up with our 2008 nominees.