Most elections for Congress feature a general election with a Democrat and a Republican who previously were picked by partisan primaries. These first-past-the-post elections present voters with a singular choice: Pick the Democratic candidate or the Republican candidate. This limited choice is becoming increasingly problematic for Americans as fewer and
California recently finalized its redistricting map. The state lost one seat after the 2020 Census, but the Golden State still will send a whopping 52 legislators to the 435-member House of Representatives in January 2023. By law, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission (CCRC) draws the congressional districts, along with the boundaries
This week, the House of Representatives voted to advance postal reform legislation by 342 to 92. That Democrats and Republicans alike could vote, in an election year, no less, for H.R. 3076 is praiseworthy. Postal reform is rare; only two significant postal reform bills have been enacted in the past half-century. Moreover, this
Last month’s party-line vote in the Senate to not enact new elections reform legislation was unsurprising. The legislation had been drawn up by congressional Democrats, and was presented to the GOP as a take-it-or-leave it proposition. Republicans saw little to like in the sprawling 700-page bill that combined both the John Lewis
“Politics ain’t bean bag,” quipped the late 19th century, fictional barfly and political analyst, Mr. Dooley. That is an eternal truth about American politics, wherein combatants have deployed everything from lies to bribes to fists, clubs, and even “violent laxatives” to win office and get their way. Yet, last year’s
Last month, some Republicans in the House of Representatives called for the ousting of some of their colleagues. What crime had these GOP legislators committed? They voted for an infrastructure bill that had been supported by Democrats. Never mind that the legislation would actually benefit these members’ constituents. Never mind that voting