Election Reformers Network aims to end partisan and insider control over elections. Favoring neither the left nor the right, we lead a U.S. movement to ensure that country comes first, not party.
Fair, functioning democracy is important
A range of powerful forces act together to make America an increasingly divided country. These influences are woven into the core elements of our life: from social media algorithms that incentivize anger, to 24-hour news cycles that retain viewers by amplifying a false dichotomy of far left and far right.
Even where and with whom people choose to live can become a political matter. No one person or side is to blame, but we have everything to lose if we don’t strengthen the core institutions of our nation to withstand this new polarizing reality.
Polarization is worsened by an archaic set of election rules left over from a bygone political era. We place parties in charge of everything from voting rules, to district lines, to election oversight. These practices overrepresent the extremes and discourage common ground.
Meanwhile, peer democracies have innovated, upgrading election systems to require impartiality, encourage compromise, reduce conflicts of interest, and sustain broad participation and trust. Evidence-based solutions exist; we only need the will to implement them.
Rising polarization colliding against outdated and hyper-partisan systems could soon lead to a complete breakdown in American democracy.
No system can ever be all things to all people, but we won’t make headway on any of the issues Americans care about until we move past polarization and operate within an impartial, trusted, fair governance system. America’s democratic republic relies on an election ecosystem that works – for today, tomorrow, and the next generation.
What’s new and noteworthy at ERN
Voters pay more attention to election administration today that perhaps ever before. Recusal options should be available for election officials, and decisions about recusal – even when those decisions are not to recuse – should be made public in advance of the election.
The political dysfunction so evident in the presidential race has two key sources, writes ERN Exec. Director Kevin Johnson for The Fulcrum: toxic polarization that elevates cultural warfare over policymaking, and rules that protect the major parties and allow them too much control over elections.
The Utah Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling that will likely restore the Independent Redistricting Commission and the prohibition on partisan gerrymandering approved by Utah voters in 2018.
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Election Reformers Network and Bridge Alliance to help journalists with the critical facts of close and contested elections.
ERN has designed a new, broadly representative state election board that will have authority over ballot initiatives, set election policy in line with state law, certify results, and nominate a nonpartisan professional chief election official.
This collection of model legislation offers a starting point for state lawmakers and advocates interested in drafting reforms to strengthen elections and democratic institutions. Models feature ethics legislation, qualification thresholds for senior election officials, and a task force study bill.
