February 4, 2004

Pioneer Press reports
on voting reform efforts

Saint Paul Pioneer Press
reporter Lenora Chu filed an excellent article on voting reform efforts
at the Capitol and the interest that is developing around the state.
February 4, 2004
http://www.twincities.com/mld/pioneerpress/7868003.htm

Afghanistan to elect
legislature by proportional representation

Afghanistan is about to
get better democracy than the United States, or at least a better voting
system, making a better democracy possible. The new constitution in
that country will establish a bicameral legislative body, with the
stronger House of the People electing 250 delegates through a system
of proportional representation. Afghanistan is just the latest in a
series of emerging democracies to choose proportional representation
over the winner-take-all voting system commonly used in the United
States. See http://www.ipsnews.net/africa/interna.asp?idnews=21918.

Presidential candidates
include support for Instant Runoff Voting, proportional representation
in platforms

Two presidential candidates
have included support for alternative voting methods in their campaign
platforms. Former Vermont governor Howard Dean, from a state with one
of the strongest movements for voting reform, has spoken in favor of
IRV on the campaign trail and includes it in his package of political
reform proposals on his website. See http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/cg/index.html?type=page&pagename=policy_policy_campaignfinance

Ohio Congressman Dennis
Kucinich, from the state that had the most cities with proportional
representation in the last century, has expressed support for PR as
well as IRV. See http://www.kucinich.us/issues/campaignreform-irv.php

High Court declines to
block 're-redistricting' in Texas...

In January, the U.S. Supreme
Court declined an emergency appeal by Texas Democrats to block implementation
of a new redistricting plan for that state's congressional delegation.
Redistricting is normally done once every ten years after the federal
census is taken. The new Texas plan comes just two years after the
last round of redistricting and is widely seen as an unprecedented
power grab by Congressman Tom DeLay, who led the drive for the new
map. Before feeling too sorry for the Democrats, consider that the
previous, Democrat-drawn map was considered to be the most effective
gerrymander in the country during that decade. The real losers in each
circumstance are the voters, who are played as pawns by the politically
powerful rather than regarded as the ultimate authority in a democracy.
See http://www.fairvote.org/redistricting/reports/remanual/txnews.htm#colo.

...and upholds McCain-Feingold
campaign finance reform

In December, the U.S. Supreme
Court upheld the major provisions of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance
reform law enacted in 2002, primarily the ban on 'soft money' contributions
and regulating independent expenditures as electioneering. See http://www.commoncause.org/news/default.cfm?ArtID=268.