3 September 2018: Voting Competition 2018

Voting Competition 2018

As announced previously (click here), I am funding prizes for voting competitions between cities in Southeast Michigan to encourage voting in the November 2018 election:

* Huntington Woods vs. Pleasant Ridge - one prize of $1000
* Berkley vs. Ferndale vs. Oak Park vs. Royal Oak vs. Southfield - prizes of $1000 (first place) and $500 (second place)

The prizes will be given to the recreation centers of the winning three cities. Determining the highest turnout (percent of registered voters who vote) will be based on figures from the Oakland County Clerk Elections Division.

Here are the results from the August 2018 primary election:

Votes          Regist voters Turnout



Huntington Woods 2,916 5,303 55.0%



Pleasant Ridge 1,232 2,337 52.7%











Berkley 5,033 12,521 40.2%



Ferndale 6,598 15,597 42.3%



Oak Park 7,341 24,034 30.5%



Royal Oak 17,393 48,028 36.2%



Southfield 21,239 60,453 35.1%

Source: Oakland County Elections, see http://results.enr.clarityelections.com/MI/Oakland/76125/210177/en/vt_data.html


I started this competition because I think societal success emanates from the bottom and percolates up, not the other way around. Complexity science, which I write about, teaches us that the dynamics of a system are due to the interactions between the parts, whether within a cell, a neighborhood or an economy. We need to interact with each other in meaningful ways to have a vibrant and successful society. At a minimum, each of us needs to vote. However, we also should get involved in a political campaign (so candidates are indebted to us, not to lobbyists or other donors), communicate regularly with elected officials (so they know what we think and that we are involved) and volunteer to help some public institutions (schools, library, other governmental bodies).
Let me know what you are doing to increase the turnout (NatPernick@gmail.com), and I will be happy to publicize it.