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According to Article 27, suffrage is granted to all citizens of Mali over the age of 18 to participate in universal, equal, and secret elections. The President of Mali is elected every 5 years by an absolute majority of votes. Additionally, under Article 61, the Deputies are elected every 5 years via universal suffrage. (Constitute Project, “Mali’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1992]] ”). +
According to Article 57, a citizen of Malta over the age of 18 and currently residing in Malta may vote in secret elections via transferable voting. These public elections are used to determine the members of the House of Representatives through proportional representation. (Constitute Project, “Malta’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1964]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2016]]” ). +
According to Section 3, elections of the members of Nitijela shall be conducted via a secret ballot system based on universal suffrage of those who have attained the age of 18 years or greater unless they are certified insane or are currently serving time for a felony. (Constitute Project, “Marshall Islands’ Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1979]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 1995]]” ). +
Under Article 3, suffrage, both indirect and direct, must be universal, equal, and secret and is a right provided to everyone who has met the legal age requirement regardless of gender. Article 26 states that The President is elected by universal suffrage. Under Article 47, the Deputies to the National Assembly are elected via direct suffrage, however the senators are elected via indirect suffrage in order to represent the all territories of The Republic. (Constitute Project, “Mauritania’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1991]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2012]]” ). +
Under Article 42, a person may be an elector if they are a citizen of at least 18 years of age and reside in the constituency in which they wish to vote. Electors shall elect members of The Parliament of Mauritius which consists of 70 members and elects the President. (Constitute Project, “Mauritius’ Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1968]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2016]]” ). +
Under Article 52, Mexicans of 18 years of age or older may participate in public elections. The House of Representatives shall be elected 1/3rd through uninominal voting and 2/3rds through proportional representation. All 128 senators shall be elected via majority voting by their own state. Under Article 41, elections of the legislative branch and executive branch shall be free, authentic, and periodical through universal and direct voting. (Constitute Project, “Mexico’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1917]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2015]]” ). +
While there were many different views on voting rights in the context of capitalism, two main influences on this were Friedrich Hayek and Joseph Schumpeter.
Hayek was in favor of the free-market system, a system by which the government does not intervene and the laws of supply and demand create the foundations for the economic system. Hayek was supportive of this system because he believed it allowed for innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship (Kenton, 2022). In addition to this, Hayek’s later book, The Constitution of Liberty, expressed that “individuals should be left largely free to act on the basis of their own values and beliefs, rather than those of government regulators or planners” (Dombroski, 2019). In the frame of voting rights, most people have the freedom to choose who they want to be put in office — people have the right to vote for whoever they want without feeling pressure from other people to pick a specific candidate. Hayek emphasized that too much government intervention may lead to a decrease in the freedom that people experience, for example, the right to vote; a capitalist/free-market economy can boost people’s freedom because it limits government intervention.
Another influential economist was Joseph Schumpeter. One of the more famous ideas he coined was an “elite democracy,” which is the idea that “individuals acquire the power to decide by means of a competitive struggle for the people’s vote” (Schumpeter, p. 269). One of the consequences of this would be that if the people we’re putting in power are elite, or better than regular citizens, then they might not have our best interests in mind when making decisions. It could mean that in a capitalist society, winning an election would be about maintaining status, rather than safeguarding the rights of people. In an interview between Shawn Gude and John Medearis, Medearis explains that one of the main reasons why democracy it a “competition among elites” is because of the “will of the people.” Essentially this means that ordinary people have to “deliberate, to decide, to act reasonably in politics.” However, it appears that Schumpeter thinks that, in other scenarios, some people may not make the “right” decision (“Why Joseph Schumpeter..”) He believes that “there is more rationality in economic decisions than in public choices because the latter are detached from personal responsibility,” and continues by saying “the typical citizen drops down to a lower level of mental performance as soon as he enters the political field” (Lemieux, 2022). People may feel detached from public choices, like voting, for instance, because they may believe that it “doesn’t really matter” because they’re just one vote. On the other hand, people may be more affected by their economic decisions because it has more direct consequences — one example of this would be immediately seeing the money in your bank account lowering after buying something. Additionally, if people’s mental performance decreases when they enter the political field, then there should be more accountability in this area.
Both Hayek and Schumpeter had interesting things to say about capitalist societies. While Hayek mainly talked about free-market economies, and his distaste for government intervention, Shumpeter was more interested in specific parts of capitalism.
Kenton, Will. 2022. “Who Was Friedrich Hayek? What Was His Economic Theory?” n.d. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/friedrich-hayek.asp#toc-what-did-friedrich-hayek-win-the-nobel-prize-for.
Dombroski, Kristie Eshelman. 2019. “Hayek, Republican Freedom, and the Universal Basic Income.” Niskanen Center. November 6, 2019. https://www.niskanencenter.org/hayek-republican-freedom-and-the-universal-basic-income/.
Schumpeter, Joseph. 1942. Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy. New York: Harper & Brothers.
“Why Joseph Schumpeter Hated Democracy.” n.d. Jacobin.com. https://jacobin.com/2020/04/joseph-schumpeter-john-medearis-democracy-elites.
Lemieux, Pierre. “A Celebrated and Puzzling Book” Cato.org. 2024. https://www.cato.org/regulation/summer-2022/celebrated-puzzling-book#:~:text=Schumpeter%20remarked%20that%20there%20is.
Under Article 38, all citizens who have attained 18 years of age have a right to suffrage unless prevented by law. Article 61 states that elections for the Parliament shall be elected by universal, direct, equal, secret, and freely expressed suffrage. Under Article 78, the President shall be elected by similarly run elections with a majority needed to become elected. If a majority is not found after the first ballot, a second ballot will be voted upon with the top two candidates to determine the winner. (Constitute Project, “Moldova’s (Republic of) Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1994]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2016]]” ). +
According to Globalsecurity.org, "It is by the 1911 Constitution that Monegasques acquired the right to elect their representatives." W.F. Dodd noted in 1911 offered this characterization of the 1911 Monaco Constitution: "A single-chambered legislative body elected by universal male suffrage is established, and thus the appearance of constitutional government is assumed, while the reigning prince retains the substance of power." Article 53 of the 1962 Constitution holds that the 24 members of The National Council are elected by direct universal suffrage. Electors are Monegasque citizens, of either gender, who have reached 18 years of age.
https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/europe/mc-nc.htm
(Constitute Project, “Monaco’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1962]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2002]]” ): https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Monaco_2002
Dodd, W. F. “Constitutional Developments in Foreign Countries During 1910.” The American Political Science Review 5, no. 3 (1911): 426. +
Chapter IV, Articles 34 and 35 of the 1924 Constitution of the Mongolian People's Republic outlined the right to vote, identifying groups included and excluded from this right. Article 34 reads: "The right to elect and to be elected to the Assemblies (Great, Small and local) is enjoyed by the following categories of citizens of the Republic of both sexes who have reached the age of 18 years by the day of the elections: -
(a) Those who earn their livelihood by their own labour, and also persons occupied in labour on their own account.
(b) Soldiers of the people's revolutionary army."
Article 35 reads: "The following cannot elect or be elected:--
(a) Persons who live exclusively by the exploitation of others with the manifest object of enrichment.
(b) Merchants and usurers who live by the labour of others and on interest from capital and income.
(c) Former princes, hutuktus and members of religious bodies who de facto reside permanently in monasteries.
(d) Persons legally declared insane or mentally deranged.
(e) Persons sentenced by a court for crimes inspired by personal advantage or of an opprobrious character."
Article 71 of the 1940 Constitution of the Mongol People's Republic guaranteed the right to vote, though it named a large number of groups that were excluded from this right. In 1944 this article was amended to read: "All citizens of the Mongol People's Republic, who have reached the age of eighteen, have the right to participate in elections and to be elected, irrespective of their sex, nationality, religion, education, nomadic or settled mode of life, and property status, with the exception of the insane and persons convicted by the court, whose sentence includes deprivation of electoral rights."
According to Article 21, members of The State Great Hural shall be elected by citizens who are qualified to vote, via universal, free, and direct voting. Under Article 31, each political party in The State Great Hural may provide one nominated presidential candidate which the citizens may vote on. (Constitute Project, “Mongolia’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1992]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2001]]”).
References:
1924 Constitution of the Mongolian People's Republic: British and Foreign State Papers (1931) https://heinonline-org.proxygw.wrlc.org/HOL/Page?collection=cow&handle=hein.cow/bfsprs0134&id=1244&men_tab=srchresults
“Constitution of the Mongol People’s Republic.” World Constitutions Illustrated, Heinonline. Accessed July 27, 2023. https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.cow/cososnat0002&i=735
“Mongolia 1992 (rev. 2001).” Constitute. https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Mongolia_2001
Under the 1905 Constitution, citizens of Montenegro elected deputies to the legislature. Article 46 describes these elections as direct. Article 48 offers the general rule for eligibility for the franchise: “Every Montenegrin citizen of age is elector by right, without regard to the sum which he pays as taxes.” Article 49 describes exceptions to that rule: “The following Montenegrin citizens lose temporarily their electoral rights: 1. Those who are sentenced to prison, until they have recovered their civil rights. 2. Those who are, as a consequence of some transgression, condemned to the loss of civil honors, this during the continuance of the penalty. 3. Bankrupts. 4. Those who are under guardianship. 5. Those who have entered the service of a foreign State without the authorization of the Montenegrin government.” Article 50 excludes members of the army from eligilility to serve as electors.
The Constitution of Montenegro states that citizens (age 18 or older) are entitled to vote in national elections for members of Parliament and for the President. (Constitute Project, “Montenegro’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2007]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2013]]” ).
1905 Montenegro Constitution: English translation from the French text of the original Constitution of 1905 " "Part 2: The National Representation," Constitution of 6/19 December 1905. (1905): 412-414: https://heinonline-org.mutex.gmu.edu/HOL/Page?handle=hein.cow/zzmb0013&id=20&collection=cow&index= +
Article 2 of Morocco’s Constitution states that representatives are elected by the people via principles of universal and free suffrage. Article 30 expands on the claim to universal suffrage stating that voting is a “personal right and national duty” granted to Moroccan citizens (age 18 and older). (Constitute Project, “Morocco’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2011]]” ). +
Under Article 73, citizens of Mozambique are granted the right of universal, direct, and equal suffrage by secret ballot. Citizens of Mozambique can vote once they are 18 years old. (Constitute Project, “Mozambique’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2004]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2007]]” ). +
Article 391 of Myanmar’s Constitution states that citizens at least 18 years old have the right to vote for each Hluttaw of their constituency. The only individuals that are not allowed to vote are those 1) “members of religious orders,” 2) those serving sentences, 3) incompetent individuals, 4) individuals otherwise disqualified by law. (Constitute Project, “Myanmar’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2008]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2015]]” ). +
Under Article 17, every citizen of Namibia, who has reached the age of 18, has a right to suffrage. Article 28 states that the President shall be elected under direct, universal, and equal suffrage. The National Assembly, under Article 46, shall be composed of 96 members who are elected by general, direct, and secret ballot. 8 other members shall be appointed by the President. (Constitute Project, “Namibia’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1990]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2014]]” ). +
Article 84 states that citizens of Nauru can vote for members of Parliament and for referendums based on the principles of universal suffrage. The voting age in Nauru is 20 years old. (Constitute Project, “Nauru’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1968]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2015]]” ). +
Under Article 84, any Nepali citizen who has attained the age of 18 years has a right to suffrage. The House of Representatives consists of 165 members to be elected through the post electoral system and 110 elected through a proportional representation electoral system. The National Assembly is voted upon by local elected leaders according to Article 86. According to Article 62, members from The National Assembly and The House of Representatives make up an electoral college to elect the President. (Constitute Project, “ Nepal’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2015]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2016]]” ). +
Article 12 of New Zealand’s Constitution grants citizens over the age of 18 the electoral rights of voting for members of the House of Representatives by secret ballot and to run to be a member of the House of Representatives. (Constitute Project, “New Zealand’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1852]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2014]]” ). +
Under Article 2 of Nicaragua’s Constitution, Nicaraguan citizens are granted the right of “sovereign power through their representatives” via equal, direct, universal and secret suffrage. Articles 132, 146, and 178 grant the right for citizens to vote for the President, legislators in the National Assembly, and local officials. (Constitute Project, “ Nicaragua’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 1987]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2014]]” ). +
Article 7 of Niger’s Constitution grants Nigerian citizens over the age of 18 or “emancipated minors'' the right to direct and indirect suffrage via equal, free, and secret ballots. Articles 47 and 84 states that the President and The Deputies are elected via universal suffrage (Constitute Project, “ Niger’s Constitution of [[Probable year:: 2010]] with Amendments through [[Probable year:: 2017]]” ). +