Why do many Americans choose not to vote? Edited

Not only the americans,mate.I also chosed not to vote.The politicians talk with citizens only when they need votes,promising to do that,or this...then they forget about us.

If someone lives in a state where one party always wins and they support the other party, it can seem pointless.

Because they have the right to.

I'm an anarcho capitalist, so I don't participate in government. But since I pay taxes I do reserve the right to use a few public resources that can't be provided by the market, like roads and police (though I've never actually needed police assistance).

Some people are just apathetic and uninterested in politics, but many feel that neither party represents them. The two parties are really largely identical and there's no real way for another party to get into the system because of the way it's structured. For a lot of people who do vote, it's a choice between two evils. Many others don't want to make that choice, they find it pointless.

Myself, I vote on some things, but I don't vote for Democrats or Republicans. I vote for ballot initiatives, for instance I voted for gay marriage when it was put on the ballot in my state. And in presidential elections I vote for candidates of progressive/leftist parties, though I know they'll never win because it's such an undemocratic system (in 2016 I voted for Jill Stein, because I wanted to contribute to her possibly getting 5% of the vote, which would strengthen the Greens next time. Unfortunately she didn't get the 5%).

About the notion that people can't complain if they don't vote, I like George Carlin's take on that:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BroU1w5wfC0

I don't completely agree with his philosophy, but I definitely agree with how he feels about the "if you don't vote you have no right to complain" bit. I don't think I lose the right to complain if I refuse to choose between one corrupt, reactionary warmonger and another corrupt, reactionary warmonger, both of which are bent on screwing the people of the US and the rest of the world as hard as they possibly can. I hate Democrats and I hate Republicans. Why should I be forced to vote for something I don't believe in? As the great socialist Eugene Debs said, "I would rather vote for something I want and not get it, than vote for something I don't want and get it". And if nothing I want is on the ballot then I'm not going to vote. I'm not going to lend legitimacy to people whose entire ideology and agenda I oppose by giving them my support, just because some people think I have no right to complain if I don't choose between one form of garbage and another. Give me something that isn't garbage and I'll gladly support it. But so long as garbage is the only thing that has a chance of winning, it's not worth voting for.

a greater question is why do those who vote always vote for the dems and gopers, all of which have proven to be huge disappointments time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time time after time