Quartervote Campaign
Quartervote is a grassroots advocacy campaign launched on the Internet to mobilise citizens worldwide to get involved in the November 2004 United States presidential elections. This social mobilisation initiative is based on the conviction that countries outside the USA have (perhaps inadvertently or against their will) made significant contributions and sacrifices that have enabled the United States to enjoy its wealthy "superpower" status. In that context, the programme uses the Internet to educate Americans about how their voting decisions will affect the entire world, and to urge them to think carefully about their choices: "With your economic and political might, comes a great deal of responsibility. That responsibility reaches down to each and every American citizen." The scope of the programme is global.
Communication Strategies
The tone of this programme is suggested by the following description: "Quartervote is a movement started by a few friends. We believe that since the end of the Cold War, the world has failed to become the more multilateral and democratic place we expected, and that the short-term advantage of the few is currently overriding the long-term greater good that would benefit all of us - rich and poor alike. The idea originated in Finland, but we welcome anyone from any country to be part of the Quartervote campaign."
At the centre of this activist project is a web-wide petition asking that each citizen in "the rest of the world" be granted at minimum one-quarter of a vote each in the November 2004 election. The justification behind this claim is that the world's citizen deserve a say in the USA's policies and actions, which tend to impact the entire world. The petition reads, "there are 6 billion people in the world, and only 293 027 571 (U.S census estimate for July 2004) of them live in the United States. That means that even with only 1/4 of a vote each, the votes of foreign citizens would outnumber resident votes by over a billion. That's our point. We are hoping to wake American voters up to the fact that you are not voting only for yourselves. You are voting for all of us." The online petition is fashioned after a historical document; the subtitle reads "Where the one hundred and ninety-two Nations of the World ask for suffrage".
The content of the document highlights issues of fairness, responsibility, and rights in the context of globalisation. This brief excerpt from the petition is indicative of the strategy of providing information (data) to inspire action: "one quarter of the world's air pollution originates in the United States - a country that refuses to ratify the Kyoto air protocols because they allegedly threaten U.S economy..."
The names, ages, and nationalities of who sign the petition demanding that representative democracy be extended beyond national borders will be sent to the United States Congress and White House. Participation involves a few clicks on the Quartervote website. Visitors may also click on a link to "vote for your preferred candidate in the 2004 U.S. Presidential Election"; as of this writing, the results are 5% in support of George W. Bush (current USA president - member of the Republican party, who is running for re-election) and 95% in support of John Kerry (member of the Democratic party, who is challenging Bush). Visitors to the website are also invited to encourage their friends to participate in Quartervote by submitting email addresses and personal messages on this website.
At the centre of this activist project is a web-wide petition asking that each citizen in "the rest of the world" be granted at minimum one-quarter of a vote each in the November 2004 election. The justification behind this claim is that the world's citizen deserve a say in the USA's policies and actions, which tend to impact the entire world. The petition reads, "there are 6 billion people in the world, and only 293 027 571 (U.S census estimate for July 2004) of them live in the United States. That means that even with only 1/4 of a vote each, the votes of foreign citizens would outnumber resident votes by over a billion. That's our point. We are hoping to wake American voters up to the fact that you are not voting only for yourselves. You are voting for all of us." The online petition is fashioned after a historical document; the subtitle reads "Where the one hundred and ninety-two Nations of the World ask for suffrage".
The content of the document highlights issues of fairness, responsibility, and rights in the context of globalisation. This brief excerpt from the petition is indicative of the strategy of providing information (data) to inspire action: "one quarter of the world's air pollution originates in the United States - a country that refuses to ratify the Kyoto air protocols because they allegedly threaten U.S economy..."
The names, ages, and nationalities of who sign the petition demanding that representative democracy be extended beyond national borders will be sent to the United States Congress and White House. Participation involves a few clicks on the Quartervote website. Visitors may also click on a link to "vote for your preferred candidate in the 2004 U.S. Presidential Election"; as of this writing, the results are 5% in support of George W. Bush (current USA president - member of the Republican party, who is running for re-election) and 95% in support of John Kerry (member of the Democratic party, who is challenging Bush). Visitors to the website are also invited to encourage their friends to participate in Quartervote by submitting email addresses and personal messages on this website.
Development Issues
Political Development, Rights, Globalisation.
Sources
Email from Susanna Laaksonen (Originator, Quartervote) to The Communication Initiative on October 20 2004; and Quartervote website.
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