Comments on: Should foreigners with PRs be allowed to vote? http://everyday.3yen.com/2007-12-06/should-foreigners-with-prs-be-allowed-to-vote/ Everyday.3Yen.com - Living in Japan Wed, 03 Feb 2010 06:17:04 +0100 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 hourly 1 By: topaz http://everyday.3yen.com/2007-12-06/should-foreigners-with-prs-be-allowed-to-vote/comment-page-1/#comment-9664 topaz Thu, 06 Dec 2007 02:40:52 +0000 http://everyday.3yen.com/2007-12-06/should-foreigners-with-prs-be-allowed-to-vote/#comment-9664 Despite what John Marcus says, foreigners are not "basically just the same as citizens living in Japan". Permanent residents, unlike Japanese citizens, have meaningful ties to another country and can legally return at any time. So many would suggest that foreigners have the incentive to vote for things that benefit them in the short term, at the long-term expense of the country (e.g. tax cuts that leave more money in their bank account this year, but could lead the country to financial ruin 20 years down the road). I believe this is one of the main reasons that there are no more than a handful of countries allowing foreigners to vote in national elections. Japan's policy is the norm. Despite what John Marcus says, foreigners are not “basically just the same as citizens living in Japan”. Permanent residents, unlike Japanese citizens, have meaningful ties to another country and can legally return at any time. So many would suggest that foreigners have the incentive to vote for things that benefit them in the short term, at the long-term expense of the country (e.g. tax cuts that leave more money in their bank account this year, but could lead the country to financial ruin 20 years down the road).

I believe this is one of the main reasons that there are no more than a handful of countries allowing foreigners to vote in national elections. Japan’s policy is the norm.

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