> There's an implication here, that people exercised free will when they voted.

There's no such implication.

> This is plainly incorrect, because free will quite clearly does not exist.

> Since free will does not exist, there is simply no a priori reason to believe that people voted in their interests.

What are you even talking about.

People (and living beings in general) acting in their own self-interest - pretty much all the time - it is the most universal general principle of life if there ever was one. This doesn't require or involve free will.

How well a biorobot (no free will!) executes in pursuing his self-interests, is the selection critereon.

Now, the people make mistakes pursuing their self-interests, doesn't mean they aren't acting in their self-interest. Because they sure as hell are - all the frigging time! It's their whole firmware!

Deindustrialization / nikefication all the way through the value chain except the very, very top last step of the value add - hasn't been in their self-interest, it isn't in the interests of their nation either.

It's only in the self-interests of short-term thinking shareholders that min-max asset valuations with great costs to everyone else but themselves.