Entries from 2011

- 128 of 128 results

  • By Any Other Name - It's A Party

    It’s only a matter of time when the right combination of political message and social networking will capture the imagination of enough people to bring in a successful new party to American politics. And it will happen, in part, when this group admits that they are actually a political party!

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  • Obama’s Field Team: Swing State Power

    President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign is already well underway. His early hires are the latest evidence of the negative effects of current state rules governing the Electoral College which force candidates to focus on a dwindling number of swing states -- and point to the value of adoption of the National Popular Vote plan for president.

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  • Presidential Tracker: Following the Money...For Now

    On Thursday, June 23rd, President Obama visited both Fort Drum and New York City and held a total of five events. According to the Washington Post, the three events in New York City were all Democratic National Committee fundraisers. Since his election, the President has attended a total of 59 fundraisers, 12 of which have been in New York. In fact, 50 of the president's 59 fundraisers as president have been in the ten states that donated the most money to Presidential campaigns in 2008.

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  • Iowa’s Laudable Redistricting Process - and the Super District Alternative

    Iowa quite justifiably has earned much praise for its redistricting process, a largely independent one driven by criteria that doesn’t include protection of incumbents or partisan gain. Nevertheless, a review of its elections and this year’s debate about redistricting still highlight the value of forms of proportional voting in a “super district” that puts voters in control of their representation rather than those drawing winner-take-all election lines, however independently those lines may be drawn.

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  • FairVote's Redistricting Resources

    With the completion of the 2010 Census, state legislatures are now in the process of the decennial redrawing of congressional, state, and local electoral districts. The process of creating new boundary lines is highly partisan and often comes at the expense of voters. By gerrymandering districts, legislators and their political allies use redistricting to choose their voters instead of giving voters the opportunity to choose them. FairVote provides a number of resources and reports about the redistricting process, and potential improvements to the current system.


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  • Top Two Primaries: The Right to Write In in California

    Last August FairVote argued that California's new Top Two "Open" Primaries system would be improved by ending its ban on counting write-in votes in the general election, as included in the legislature's implementing statute. The provision is now the subject of litigation.

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  • Debate Exclusion Harms Voters

    The election of capable candidates is arguably the most direct impact that the citizenry can have in this process. Voters rely on the media to create accurate portrayals of each candidate and present a fair opportunity for credible candidates to make their case to their constituents. CNN failed to provide voters the opportunity to evaluate Governor Johnson, instead relying on opinion polls of dubious importance.

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  • What Turkey's Elections Revealed

    On June 12, Turkey held national elections of great significance. Turkey is a potential new member of the European Union (EU) and often cited as a model for Egypt in its moves toward democracy while balancing elections, a large Islamic population and a strong, largely secular military. The election showed both Turkey’s promise and problematic features that nations like Egypt should avoid.

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  • The Corollary to Moroccan Exceptionalism

    The Arab Spring movement continues to have an impact on nations across the Arab world. Now this remarkable time of change has touched Morocco, the region’s oldest monarchy. In a televised speech on June 18, King Mohammed VI once again set the kingdom apart from the rest of the region by announcing sweeping constitutional reforms whereby he would relinquish some of his powers, empowering a hitherto moribund parliamentary system and granting the prime minister more executive powers. As a citizen of Morocco and backer of the 47-year-old monarch’s reform proposals, I see them as a bold and shrewd move that underscores his commitment to Morocco’s democratization and meaningful transition to a constitutional monarchy.

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  • AMPAS Modifies Best Picture Nomination Method, Maintains Proportional Voting Principles

    The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a long history of using innovative voting methods to select the nominees and winners of its annual Academy Award "Oscars". This month it  announced changes in the way nominations for the sought-after Best Picture award will be determined. The Academy announced that, beginning next year, a modified system similar to choice voting will be used to select Best Picture nominees, with choice voting continued to be used to select five nominees in most other categories. It also announced that ranked choice voting (RCV, or "instant runoff voting" or "preferential voitng") willl continue to be used for the final vote for Best Picture.

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