This senior essay focuses on Election Day Voter Registration, the political philosophy behind this policy and the policy’s affect on Democratic Party turnout in elections. Examining election results through regression analysis, the paper examines the common belief that election day voter registration benefits the Democratic Party by appealing more to the traditional constituencies of the Democratic Party.
Further, it examines the philosophical arguments for and against election day voter registration, drawing on thinkers such as Lippman, Schumpeter, Hamilton, and Madison.