I have believed that democracy is the system of government most likely to guarantee economic growth, stability and human rights within an organized society since I studied comparative government and democratization as a graduate student at the London School of Economics.
Over two decades later, I now also understand that democracy is much more fragile than I thought then. Democracy’s promise hinges on voter participation and competition, and I am alarmed because these elements appear to be weakening in many established democracies, including the United States.
Voter participation
As students of democracy, my grad school colleagues and I were taught that participation is a core tenet of a democratic system. However, less than 64% of eligible American voters cast a ballot in the 2024 election.
Over the past 24 years, an average of only approximately 52% of Americans have turned out to vote, with greater turnout for presidential election years than midterms. I do question how we claim “power or rule” (“kratia”) of the “people” (“demos”), if half of eligible voters abdicate their power or refuse the option provided to them.
I am concerned that our chronically low participation levels, whether caused by apathy, disenfranchisement or voter suppression, call the strength of our democracy into question or, at the very least, our culture of democracy.
Competition
The second core tenet of democracy is competition — of candidates and parties, yes — but also of ideas and policies. In a media environment that is increasingly dominated by self-selected partisan silos and algorithm-driven echo chambers, many voters are exposed only to news and perspectives that mirror their views.
In our increasingly polarized society, I believe we are robbed of the benefits of being exposed to a diverse set of ideas that can be compared and debated with arguments supported by verifiable facts. As even news outlets become more polarized, where can the citizen turn to experience the competition of ideas, which then should yield competing political proposals?
A call to action for the impact sector
With my training as a political scientist as my guide, I believe the great lesson that we can all take from the 2024 election year is, no matter how established a democracy may be, the democratic process must be nurtured and protected if it is to be maintained.
I believe that part of our work as impact investors should focus on determining how we help rekindle the flame of a true and vibrant democracy — where more than half of eligible voters feel sufficiently concerned to vote and where our system of information allows for true competition of ideas.
Looking to the future, I think we as a sector should determine how we can help cultivate a healthier democracy in order to serve our other goals for social and environmental progress.
I know that many of us are gravely concerned about the results of the 2024 election here in the United States and wondering what lies ahead. As for me, I will leave you with this word of encouragement — we need not wait until 2026 or 2028 to vote for change. We have opportunities to express our values and work for our vision of the future every day.
Remember, financial capital can be political capital. Leveraging our financial system and our investments to ensure more equity, justice and sustainability is attained is the worthiest cause to fight for that I can imagine.
Read more: Celebrating the right of women to vote
Stephanie Cohn Rupp is the chief executive officer and partnership chair at Veris Wealth Partners. She has more than 20 years of global impact investing experience. She was also recently named board chair of US SIF: The Sustainable Investment Forum. She has more than 25 years of global impact investing experience.
