Democracy by Default: When Silence Elects the President

After my last post, Truth, Justice and Wednesday Addams, a few friends reached out to challenge my claim that Americans are politically passive. They pointed to the abundance of protests, movements, online activism, and reports in what I call "news-as-entertainment" as evidence of high engagement.

But voter participation tells a different story. Unlike media coverage or social media trends, turnout at the polls is a more reliable measure of democratic engagement. A healthy democracy depends on citizens showing up—not just speaking out.

I dug into the 2024 election data from the U.S. Federal Election Commission and the Census Bureau. The numbers paint a sobering picture.

• Voter Registration: In 2024, 73.6% of eligible U.S. citizens were registered to vote. That means over a quarter of eligible voters weren’t even on the rolls.

• Voter Turnout: Of those registered, 65.3% actually voted. That’s 65.3% of 73.6%—which comes out to just 48.1% of all eligible citizens. Less than half of those who could vote did.

• Election Results: The current President received 49.8% of the popular vote. That’s 49.8% of the 48.1% who voted—meaning only 24.3% of eligible citizens cast a vote for the person now leading the country.

So yes, there’s noise. There’s protest. There’s passion. But when fewer than one in four citizens choose the President, it’s not just passivity—it’s a quiet surrender of democratic power.