In an age where the voice of the people is heard in ways that were unthinkable in previous generations, an age where opinions, ideas, and thoughts can no longer be constrained or held back, an age where an individual can express their voice against the collective majority, in this privileged age of self empowerment there is still a large proportion of people that don't exercise this privilege of self empowerment.

How does that happen? By simply not participating. For example, in the 2000 United States Presidential elections, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance reports that only 49.3% of the national eligible voters actually turned out to vote in that election.

The United States is the self proclaimed leader of the free world, but even in a nation where freedom of speech is exercised to a level that makes citizens of other nations envious, a vast majority of people failed to turn out to participate in what is now considered one of the most historic and impactful Presidential elections in the history of the world.

However, despite which democratic nation that comes to mind, odds are that majority of people still don't vote. Voting in your country regardless of whether it is for a political election, policy reform, etc. is one of the single greatest empowerment tools that a country can give to its citizens.

Therefore, the question must be asked, why is it that people don't vote? The answer to this question is quite simple, people don't vote because they don't understand what type of power they possess. They don't believe that their vote can make a difference; they don't believe that their vote even matters. In fact they don't even believe that one person can actually make a difference. Most of these people will have the mindset that nothing I do really makes any type of difference in the grand scheme of things.

The 2000 United States Presidential election outcome revolutionized the world as we knew it. In hind sight, everyone should've realized by now that every vote does matter. While most people reacted to the controversial outcome of the 2000 USA Presidential election by saying, "my vote could've really made a difference." many others went on to say, "I knew it, my vote wouldn't have made a difference after all, and look what happened in the end".

As controversial as the 2000 Presidential election was, it should have been the biggest wakeup call that we as a global community have ever experienced. It should have reminded us that yes, we do have some control in the affairs of our society, and yes every person can and does make a difference.

Simply stated, If the people who have chosen not to vote, can begin to understand just how powerful of a person they are, if they can begin to understand that everything that they do, or don't do, even to the smallest detail impacts our society in a variety of ways, and makes an overall difference in the end. Then, and only then we will begin to see a shift in the number of people that turn out to participate in their country's voting process.