On November 19th, Malaysians will cast their vote to decide which political bloc will rule Malaysia for the next four to five years. While some contemplate whether to vote on that day, many wonder how do ancient people vote? Is it the same like today or a bit different?
The closest thing to modern election were the ones organized by the Greeks. But, here's a shocking fact: Greeks or to be exact Athenians doneedsn't believe democracy to be right method to choose officials. If the democracy need to be effective, random people must be selected to serve in Athens governing body, Council of 500 for a year.
To determine who should serve in that council, Athenians employed a system known as sortition. 10 tribes who call Athens their home will call 50 random individuals from each tribe to serve in the council. Eligible citizens were given a specialized token which will be inserted into a special machine called kleroterion. From there, the machine would decide randomly each tribe's contribution to the council.
As a city state at that time, all laws and court decisions in Athens were made by a body called Assembly/ekklesia. Assembly was a democratic body where male citizens have their say on laws and court decisions. Historians believe roughly 6,000 male participants out of 30,000 to 60,000 Athens citizens participate in Assembly meetings.
Usually, Assembly participants met at an amphitheater called Pnyx. Pnyx translated as 'tightly packed together" and could hold between 6,000 to 13,000 people. Assembly's daily agenda was set by Council of 500 with all legislation and government policies were put to a vote. If a participant wants to vote, he must raise his hand where the winner would be decided by nine presidents or proedroi.
Any attempts to cheat or bribe will be futile. This is because the morning right before the Assembly started, nine random individuals would be selected as vote counters. There were a few positions in the government determined by the Assembly. For example, if anyone aspires to became a military general, any candidates must gain enough thumbs up votes to be elected.
As for court decisions either criminal or civil trials, verdicts would be determined by juries between 200 to 5,000 people. A member of the jury would be selected as judge. That person's role was not to give a final say but to make sure the rules and procedures were followed.
Once juries decided to determine a trial's verdict, they would cast a secret vote where each got two small stones. One stone was solid while the other with a hole in the middle. If a jury wants to cast a verdict, he would approach two urns before casting his decision in the first urn. After that, the unused ones would be tossed to the second urn. During that process, nobody's watching and guessing his verdict.
Raising hands for a vote? That's normal and it's still exist as part of voting process anywhere in the world from school to Parliament. But how about shouting? Well, in Sparta, those who want to be elected must make sure their supporters shouted and cheered them when they enter a large assembly room. Judges will compare the volume of the shouts to determine the winner of the election.
If PH supporters hopping mad over Sheraton Move, well, ordinary Romans would be pissed at a body known as Centuriate Assembly. This body not only elect office holders from Consuls to Censors but also responsible for declaring war. If the rich people wanted a bill to pass or chose a certain person as Consul, they will vote as a block and sideline the lower classes.
Who knew voting was difficult in the ancient world? It may be difficult but they have done their job as citizens to their city state. So, please vote because it's a responsibility as a citizen no matter how much you despised those political blocs. If these people can do it, why not you?
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