Neal Simon, the author of Contract to Unite America: Ten Reforms to Reclaim Our Republic, joined T.J. O’Hara on Deconstructed to discuss the challenges of our current partisan political environment and how to address them.
In 2018, Mr. Simon ran as an independent candidate for the U.S. Senate for the State of Maryland. He polled well and even made it into a debate before political power and money overwhelmed his campaigned. After a strong debate performance, he describes how the future debates and town halls, which had been promised, were suddenly off the table. He also talks about the incredible barriers that confront independent and third-party candidates yet somehow don’t apply to Democrat and Republican candidates.
Mr. Simon describes ten critical reforms that he believes would serve to level the playing field and attract more independent and third-party candidates to pursue federal office. His recommendations include the end of gerrymandering and the use of Ranked Choice Voting as well as term limits, campaign finance reform, and other substantive ideas.
Get a glimpse into the “behind the scenes” world of federal elections that almost makes it impossible to get elected unless you are a favored candidate of one of the two major parties. It shouldn’t be this way, but it is. Listen to hear how Neal Simon believes we can change that.