Election Reform

Current campaign practices and laws make a mockery of the democratic process. It no longer matters which of the two major parties wins; it only matters who funds them. Wealthy individuals and corporations are able to buy political influence while the citizenry is further disenfranchised. Although much is made of low voter turnout, in actuality high percentages of registered voters cast their votes. The problem is one of registration. The laws should be changed to make registration easier. The government should make a greater effort to encourage voter registration. Minority views and parties should be given greater opportunities to win representation by implementing proportional representation and instant runoff voting.


We advocate:


· Implementation of Instant Runoff Voting at every level of government to ensure majority rule, and the adoption of proportional representation for all elected bodies.


· More aggressive voter registration efforts, including Election Day registration, overseen by a non-partisan body. We advocate increasing voter participation by holding elections on weekends or holidays, allowing early voting, and voting by mail.
· Protection against vote fraud by making vote counting software codes open for public inspection and verification, and by requiring a paper audit trail for all votes.


· Enactment of stricter campaign finance reform laws that would limit the influence of special interest money on elections. This should be supplemented with "clean money" laws such as in Arizona which provide matching campaign funds for all candidates who raise enough money through individual donations. Furthermore, free television and mail should be provided under reasonable conditions for every qualified statewide, congressional and presidential candidate.


· Allowing all convicted felons to regain the right to vote upon completion of their sentence.


· All recognized political parties should have equal access to ballot status and primaries.