This entry focuses on six major questions concerning the rationality and morality of voting:

1. Is it rational for an individual citizen to vote?
2. Is there a moral duty to vote?
3. Are there moral obligations regarding how citizens vote?
4. Is it justifiable for governments to compel citizens to vote?
5. Is it permissible to buy, trade, and sell votes?
6. Who ought to have the right to vote, and should every citizen have an equal vote?

Question 6 concerns the broader question of whether democratic forms of government are preferable to the alternatives; see Christiano (2006) on the justification of democracy for a longer discussion. See also Pacuit (2011) for a discussion of which voting method is best suited to reflect the “will of the group”. See Gosseries (2005) for a discussion of arguments for and against the secret ballot.

• 1. The Rationality of Voting
  • 1.1 Voting to Change the Outcome
  • 1.2 Voting to Change the “Mandate”
  • 1.3 Other Reasons to Vote
• 2. The Moral Obligation to Vote
• 3. Moral Obligations Regarding How One Votes
  • 3.1 The Expressivist Ethics of Voting
  • 3.2 The Epistemic Ethics of Voting
• 4. The Justice of Compulsory Voting
• 5. The Ethics of Vote Buying
• 6. Who Should Be Allowed to Vote? Should Everyone Receive Equal Voting Rights?
  • 6.1 Democratic Challenges to One Person, One Vote
  • 6.2 Non-Democratic Challenges to One Person, One Vote
• Bibliography