First you have to register (which most of us do before we turn 18 and can legally vote) which weeds out the most apathetic and, one would think, least likely to be educated on the issues.
Your second point is going to happen regardless, but by being required to vote once you have registered for it, it at least removes the apathetic "It's not going to change anything so I won't vote" mindset that is just as easy to manipulate.
At the end of the day, all of the existing political systems have serious flaws with not a single easy fix in sight, but at least I can say "I didn't vote for the bastard".