Search query: washington

In that writing I spoke of how our elected representatives thrive on the red meat rhetoric they throw out to their base to score political points, rather than attempting to govern. Unfortunately, it is often much easier for them to make statements that generate a strong emotional response...

Arkansas State Senator Clarke Tucker (Little Rock) has introduced a state constitutional amendment that would implement a nonpartisan top-two primary system in Arkansas similar to the systems in place in California, Washington, and Alaska. SJR 4 would replace a primary system that divides voters between a Republican and Democratic primary ballot with primaries in which all voters and candidates, regardless of party, participate on a single ballot. The top two vote-getters move on the general el

Here’s the headline from the Washington Post that arrived in my email this week: “Most Americans say Biden has not accomplished much since taking office, Post-ABC poll finds” Upon clicking on the headline, to read more, the actual story at the WaPo continues with these sub-heads: “Most Americans say Biden has accomplished 'not very much' or 'little or nothing' during his time in office” “Most Americans think Biden has not created more jobs, improved roads and bridges, or made electric cars m

“And they’re off!” The date of the article is January 29, 2023. It has barely been 12 weeks since the 2022 mid-term election. And the article in the Washington Post proudly jumpstarts the next general election campaign with a bold, audience-grabbing headline: “The 2024 GOP presidential primary season is kicking off. Here’s the potential field.” Really? Can we not have a 6-month breather before American voters are once again forced to sit through another non-stop, pundit-pushed, poll-driven, b

While there’s lots of talk about “red waves” and “blue waves,” what really deserves the headlines is the “reform wave” that’s sweeping the country. From coast to coast, election reform was on the ballot, and voters overwhelmingly supported it. Votes are still being counted in a number of states, but a few wins we already know: Ranked Choice Voting was adopted by voters in Seattle, WA; Ojai, CA; Fort Collins, CO; Evanston, IL; Portland, ME; Portland, OR, and Multnomah County, Oregon. Money in

An overwhelming majority of Arkansas voters rejected Issue 2 on the ballot Tuesday. The measure would have raised the minimum threshold to pass future state ballot initiatives to 60% of the vote, and no doubt would have deterred many future reform efforts in the state. "We are extremely happy that Arkansans overwhelmingly defeated Issue 2 & kept power where it belongs - in the hands of voters,” said Bonnie Miller, chair of Protect AR Constitution. “We sent a clear message to politicians & lobb

Editor's Note: The following is part of the discussion on centrism and appealing to independent voters, and features perspectives from Democratic Michigan State Representative Laurie Pohutsky and Republican Political Consultant Alex Hays. The commentary originally published on Divided We Fall. Democrats’ Efforts to Deliver for Independents Will Pay Off in November By Laurie Pohutsky – Democratic Michigan State Representative For roughly the last year and a half, many people have asserted tha

Another Election Day is quickly approaching in the US, and many voters have an opportunity to add their voices to the growing repudiation of an election system that has failed to represent and provide for the country’s citizenry. Since 2016, the number of ballot initiatives to reform US elections has grown exponentially. 2018 was the biggest year in half a century for voting improvements. 2020 and 2021 built on the momentum with fairer voting proposals, independent redistricting, and initiative

Partisan machinations have increasingly shaken the faith in the integrity of the election process. Election deniers were just the start, but things have escalated to the point where some election administrators – loyal to their party – have refused to certify election results for political reasons.

The reform landscape has changed over the last few years. Solutions that were once presented at odds with each other have combined efforts to give voters fairer, more equitable, and more accountable elections. The first success story of this can be found in Alaska, where the state conducted its first top-four nonpartisan primary for most of its elections on August 16, and used ranked choice voting for the first time in a special election for the state’s single congressional seat. A majority of