On the eve of the upcoming cantonal elections on March 20th and 27th, all candidates are predicting low voter turnout for this ballot. In the most optimistic forecasts, they speak of 40% voter participation.
Indeed, in addition to the fact that the General Council is often poorly understood by many of our fellow citizens, this election takes place in a context of repeated political crises at the highest levels of the state and a general disinterest in politics among a significant number of French people.
We can look at the past two elections, European and regional, where barely half of the voters turned out to the polls. Therefore, there is a risk that the polling stations will once again be shunned on March 20th and 27th. This poses a risk for the future elected officials because to what extent will they truly be legitimate? Here, the basic principles of representative democracy are questioned.
However, this may appear paradoxical, as with nearly half of its budget devoted to social affairs, the department is the public institution that has the most impact on people’s daily lives.
These cantonal elections must be followed with great attention as they already form part of a pre-campaign for the presidential elections of 2012.
by Florent Vergnes-Fletz
