FairVote Blog
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, August 17
by Devin McCarthy // August 17, 2012 //Mitt Romney's choice of Paul Ryan could improve his chances in Ryan's home state of Wisconsin, but by how much? Will the overperforming economies of many swing states give President Obama victory in November?
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, August 6
by Presidential Tracker, Devin McCarthy // August 6, 2012 //Nationwide polls remain close, but recent swing state polling suggests that President Barack Obama is beginning to pull away from Mitt Romney in the few states that will decide the 2012 presidential election. Obama attempts to further increase this lead with another week of swing state campaigning.
-
Redistricting Guide on FairVote Tools for Analysis and Mapping
by Joe Witte // August 3, 2012 //How much does it cost to participate in the redistricting process? Common software that politicians, political parties and lobbyists use for redistricting costs anywhere from $4,500 a year to a $7,000 one-time fee. At FairVote, we don't believe that participation in the redistricting process should be limited to those who can afford to spend thousands of dollars on software. We are proud to present you with our Redistricting Guide, which gives you a crash course in the free redistricting software we used to create our Monopoly Politics 2012 and Fair Voting 2012 reports.
-
Electing Lords: A Unique Opportunity for Electoral Reform in the British Upper House
by Devin McCarthy // July 31, 2012 //A lordship, by its very definition, has historically not been an elected office. But there is a strong movement in the British House of Commons to transform the upper house of the British parliament, the House of Lords, into a largely elected body based on proportional representation. This reform is long overdue.
-
North Carolina’s Miniscule Runoff Turnout Undercuts Legitimacy
by Devin McCarthy // July 24, 2012 //A higher percentage of Americans believe in vampires than voted in North Carolina's July 17th primary runoff for nominations for Congress and key statewide offices. Unless North Carolina wants to risk a vampire or a similarly extreme candidate winning an election, it needs to change its runoff system. Instant runoff voting is the solution.
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, July 24
by Erin Ellis // July 24, 2012 //POTUS analysts report that there may only be five true battleground states this election: Florida, Ohio, Colorado, Virginia and North Carolina. However, if large numbers of Latinos register to vote, new swing states could emerge. In other news, as only 6 percent of voters are still undecided, the candidates' campaigns spend a whopping $400 on each such voter.
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, July 20
by Erin Ellis // July 20, 2012 //Obama and Romney cancel campaign events in swing states Florida and New Hampshire, respectively, to address last night's tragic Colorado shooting; polls show that the candidates are deadlocked in battleground states at 46 percent apiece; a high turnout of African American voters could turn the tables in Obama's favor.
-
Instant Runoff Voting in Action in Takoma Park
by Rob Richie, Jared Gay // July 18, 2012 //Our analysis of the July 18 thinstant runoff election in Takoma Park, Maryland. We include information from an exit survey regarding opinions of instant runoff voting.
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, July 17
by Jared Gay, Erin Ellis // July 17, 2012 //Obama and Romney visit swing states Ohio and Pennsylvania, respectively, to bash one another's economic policies. Furthermore, analysts identify Virginia as the most crucial swing state this election and some predict that Obama can win its Electoral College votes.
-
Swing States of America: Candidate Tracker and News, July 10
by Jared Gay, Erin Ellis // July 10, 2012 //President Obama campaigns in swing state Iowa and Romney in swing state Colorado; mobilizing black female voters could be a tiebreaker for Obama; Missouri, now a red-leaning state, is becoming "irrelevant."