Panel Discussion: State-by-State Reforms to Make Elections More Accountable to Voters

voted
Visuals on Unsplash
Published: 06 Dec, 2023
1 min read

American Enterprise Institute's Kevin R Kosar recently hosted a panel to discuss why all segments of voters should support structural electoral reform efforts happening across the country. The conversation took place not long after Kosar published a detailed report on why conservatives, in particular, should support these efforts.

The panel featured Matt Germer, who is the associate director and resident election fellow for R Steet's Governance Program, former Ohio State Representative Gene Krebs, and Election Reformers Network Executive Director Kevin Johnson.

Each of the participants dived deep into notable updates to nonpartisan systemic reform nationwide, including:

A bipartisan bill in Wisconsin to enact Final Five Voting (a nonpartisan top-five primary with ranked choice voting [RCV] in the general election); Burlington, Vermont's upcoming mayoral race which will use RCV; and a potential 2024 ballot initiative in Idaho to open the state's partisan primary system.

But these examples are just the tip of the iceberg.

Cities, counties, and states across the country are changing the way public officials are elected to shift the incentive structure toward accountability to voters first. With voter dissatisfaction in governance at record-highs, it is important for voters to look at how we elect our representatives.

Check out the full panel discussion above. 

You Might Also Like

Ballrooms, Ballots, and a Three-Way Fight for New York
Ballrooms, Ballots, and a Three-Way Fight for New York
The latest Independent Voter Podcast episode takes listeners through the messy intersections of politics, reform, and public perception. Chad and Cara open with the irony of partisan outrage over trivial issues like a White House ballroom while overlooking the deeper dysfunctions in our democracy. From California to Maine, they unpack how the very words on a ballot can tilt entire elections and how both major parties manipulate language and process to maintain power....
30 Oct, 2025
-
1 min read
California Prop 50 gets an F
Princeton Gerrymandering Project Gives California Prop 50 an 'F'
The special election for California Prop 50 wraps up November 4 and recent polling shows the odds strongly favor its passage. The measure suspends the state’s independent congressional map for a legislative gerrymander that Princeton grades as one of the worst in the nation....
30 Oct, 2025
-
3 min read
bucking party on gerrymandering
5 Politicians Bucking Their Party on Gerrymandering
Across the country, both parties are weighing whether to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Texas, California, Missouri, North Carolina, Utah, Indiana, Colorado, Illinois, and Virginia are all in various stages of the action. Here are five politicians who have declined to support redistricting efforts promoted by their own parties....
31 Oct, 2025
-
4 min read