Not voting is an irrational option

 

“By all means, stay home if you want, but don't bullshit yourself that you're not voting. In reality, there is no such thing as not voting: You either vote by voting, or you vote by staying home and tacitly doubling the value of some diehard's vote.”

- David Foster Wallace, Up, Simba!

What I disdain about people not wanting to vote for whatever reasons, is that all over the world people are fighting and dying, to get a fairer vote or to even get to vote at all, and here in Malaysia people do not vote or don’t want to.

Anecdotally speaking, the people who say they do not want to vote usually are comfortable urbanites.

I get it, I really do. All evidence from partisan fervour to policy decisions carried out by Umno/Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional point to the reality that their voting bases are more comfortable supporting autocratic ideas most often cloaked in pragmatism rather than democratic ones.

So, if you actually believe in democratic ideas, all you see is Harapan falling into the pit that the Old Maverick and his ilk created decades ago.

You see DAP becoming the running dog it accused MCA of being and you understand, if you are a non-Malay, your vote means very little to the coalition you support because they are too busy fulfilling the expectations of those who did not vote for them.

You get sick and tired of going on social media and reading anonymous partisan trolls who mock and vilify those who are trying to get Harapan to do the right thing.

You are disgusted by rather dumb excuses like “Rome wasn’t built in a day” when the house of cards is slowly tumbling down. You fear that your vote would eventually be the path to a theocracy because you assumed that the party you voted for would be the bulwark against such an encroachment.

You are worried that Harapan is taking you for granted. Harapan political operatives will smugly assume that, especially if you are non-Malay, you do not have a choice.

The third choice

This is why I advocate voting for PSM or Muda candidates if you have that option. I have no idea why some Harapan supporters ask Muda and PSM to go contest in PN areas.

The reason I want a PSM or Muda candidate in my area is that I think Harapan is failing the base that keeps it in power.

The reason I vote for Harapan adjacent is that Harapan needs to understand that urban voters have options, much like the rural voters who can freely switch their vote, knowing that their needs are taken care of.

If you do not have a PSM or Muda candidate in your area (rural or urban) and you do not want to vote for PN, then vote for the independent candidate instead.

Do your research. Spend a little effort on your vote instead of complaining online or simply not voting. Discover whether the candidate is a proxy for the dominant parties or is really independent.

Do not be bothered by what partisans say either in the real world or on social media about your choice to split the vote. If Harapan loses your vote it is not because of you but rather because of what it failed to do.

Vote for possibility of reform

If I had it my way, the Harapan-supporting demographic would vote for any PSM or Muda candidate that stood for election even if it meant not supporting the other unity coalition candidates.

People who are lucky enough to have this option have it easy. At least, they know that they are voting for a possibility of reform by voting for the progressive front in this country.

This is why Harapan and its hardcore supporters have been ruthless and successful in ensuring that urban voters do not have options. This, of course, is one of the reasons this country will eventually go down the manure hole, but this is a topic for another article.

Also, remember that there is an objective and quantifiable difference between the states Harapan and PN run. This too is an important factor.

Beyond the religious “Green Wave”, PN has demonstrated that it cannot run states. It cannot run the country, which it demonstrated ably when it was in power and the only thing that it had going for itself is racial and religious rhetoric. With this in mind, voting for an Umno/Harapan candidate is the objectively better option.

If you are a non-Malay, this is a no-brainer. If you do not have a Harapan-adjacent candidate then you could do worse by voting for a PN candidate or not voting at all.

What makes it worse is that in this state election, you have to vote or hope people vote for Umno, which for decades was demonised by Harapan.

Because if Umno fails in this election and Harapan’s strategy is to rejuvenate Umno in the hopes of a more stable coalition, what we are looking at is more turmoil in the federal government.

So, abstaining is not an option. If you do not like what PN is selling, do not vote for it and instead vote to maintain the status quo or vote for a Harapan-adjacent candidate to make a point.

Do not think that by abstaining you are not shaping the direction of this country. Believing that abstaining sends the message that a certain section of the polity is dissatisfied is pointless because a lower turnout or less support merely confirms that a win is a win, which is one of the drawbacks of democracy.

If you are a progressive voter, it is cold comfort that at this time your vote carries the most weight. This is why PN is desperate for you not to show up and Harapan assumes that you are with them. However you choose to vote, not voting is an irrational choice. -Mkini

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S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. Fīat jūstitia ruat cælum - “Let justice be done though the heavens fall.”

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.