Editorial: Lottery is not the ticket

Monday, July 31, 2006 | 7:24 a.m.

Arizona voters will have the opportunity in November to decide whether those who vote in future elections will have the chance to win $1 million.

An initiative spearheaded by Mark Osterloh, a political activist and an unsuccessful Arizona gubernatorial candidate in 2002, calls for awarding $1 million to one lucky voter in every general election.

It doesn't matter whether these people have studied the candidates or issues. They just need to show up and vote.

It's cheaper than a lottery ticket. And, according to a recent story in The New York Times, the election lottery would be much easier to win, with odds of 1 in 2 million compared to Powerball jackpot odds of 1 in 146,107,942.

Osterloh says making a game of voting is key to improving voter turnout and rekindling an interest in politics. It would be laughable, if Osterloh and the 185,902 voters who signed his ballot petition weren't serious.

While every election inspires a new round of concerns about voter apathy and low turnout, paying people to show up isn't the solution. The right to vote for leaders of our own choosing and without fear of retribution is at the very core of our liberty. Without that privilege, our democracy would crumble.

It is a shame so many Americans shirk this civic duty. But turning it into a convenience store game only degrades what too few Americans value already.