Arizona measure seeks to turn voting into lottery

PHOENIX, Nov 5 (Reuters) Voters in Arizona have a million reasons to go to the polls on Tuesday.

Those who make the effort in this southwest US state will decide the fate of a controversial measure that would award a 1 million dollars prize to one lucky resident, just for casting a ballot in an Arizona primary or general election.

The initiative is the brainchild of Mark Osterloh, an ophthalmologist and lawyer from Tucson, who came up with the proposition to try to boost dismal voter turnout in Arizona and across the country in recent elections.

During the last mid-term election -- when the US presidency is not up for grabs -- Arizona officials said about 56 per cent of the state's registered voters showed up at the polls. That same figure nationally was just 40 per cent.

''We've got a real problem that everybody recognises (and) we've got a real solution,'' Osterloh said. ''It's like being able to win a door prize at a church social. You walk into the polls, get what amounts to a ticket and you may win a really big prize. Who can resist something like that?'' Under the November 7 ballot proposal, Arizona voters would get a crack at winning the jackpot prize in state primaries, and another in general elections.

A winner would be chosen at random every two years, with the proceeds coming from leftover cash from the Arizona Lottery.

STAYING AWAY FROM THE POLLS The measure seeks to tackle voter apathy, which academics say is growing not just in the United States but in democracies worldwide.

A study drawing on 63 democracies by academic Louis Massicotte, a visiting professor at American University, shows the decline is led by young people who are uninterested in the political process.

In Arizona, critics say the ballot proposal denigrates the lofty ideals of democracy and fear it will bring out ill-informed voters for the wrong reasons.

''People should not be motivated to vote by greed. People should be motivated to vote by wanting to do their civic duty or decide important issues,'' said Curtis Gans, director of American University's Center for the Study of the American Electorate, in Washington.

Recent polls have the lottery proposition trailing. Arizona politicians have stayed away from the issue.

Undeterred, Osterloh said he would push on, and hopes to place a similar initiative on ballots in 22 other states that allow for such referendums, if Arizona voters approve it.

''This is not just for Arizona. This could change the entire country,'' he said. ''We could actually have a Congress and a president elected by the vast majority of people. Think of that. And it all could all start this November in Arizona.'' REUTERS PB RAI0900