FairVote - Illinois' Drive to Revive Cumulative Voting

Illinois' Drive to Revive Cumulative Voting

Illinois Report Highlights Benefit of Proportional Representation -- July 2001

In 1999 the Institute for Government and Public Affairs (IGPA) at the University of Illinois received a major grant to conduct a study of the impact of the state's conversion from cumulative voting to single-member districts in 1980. The IGPA formed a task force to analyze different electoral systems and make recommendations. Co-chaired by former Republican governor Jim Edgar and former Democratic Congressman and federal judge Abner Mikva, the task force members included leading state legislators and civic leaders.

The task force has called for reviving cumulative voting, and the Institute for Government and Public Affairs has issued an excellent report about their deliberations and the history of cumulative voting in the state. The Illinois story is a testimony to the impact of even very modest proportional representation plans. In this case, it still required close to 25% of the vote to win a seat in a in three-seat district, but this change was significant for a broader range of political forces to participate in elections, win representation and contribute to good policy-making.

Read the executive summary of the report released July 9 by the Illinois Task Force on Political Representation and Alternative Electoral Systems entitled "Illinois should return to cumulative voting" [.pdf 1 MB]
Read the full findings of the Illinois Task Force [.pdf 1.6 MB]
Visit the Midwest Democracy Center's website. They are an Illinois-based group advocating for the return of cumulative voting. [Here]



Home. > Program for Representative Government > History and Use > Statewide > Illinois > Illinois' Drive to Revive Cumulative Voting
	Illinois' Drive to Revive Cumulative Voting Illinois Report Highlights Benefit of Proportional Representation -- July 2001 In 1999 the Institute for Government and Public Affairs (IGPA) at the University of Illinois received a major grant to conduct a study of the impact of the state's conversion from cumulative voting to single-member districts in 1980. The IGPA formed a task force to analyze different electoral systems and make recommendations. Co-chaired by former Republican governor Jim Edgar and former Democratic Congressman and federal judge Abner Mikva, the task force members included leading state legislators and civic leaders. The task force has called for reviving cumulative voting, and the Institute for Government and Public Affairs has issued an excellent report about their deliberations and the history of cumulative voting in the state. The Illinois story is a testimony to the impact of even very modest proportional representation plans. In this case, it still required close to 25% of the vote to win a seat in a in three-seat district, but this change was significant for a broader range of political forces to participate in elections, win representation and contribute to good policy-making. Read the executive summary of the report released July 9 by the Illinois Task Force on Political Representation and Alternative Electoral Systems entitled "Illinois should return to cumulative voting" [.pdf 1 MB] Read the full findings of the Illinois Task Force [.pdf 1.6 MB] Visit the Midwest Democracy Center's website. They are an Illinois-based group advocating for the return of cumulative voting. [Here]	Recent Articles October 19th 2009 A better election system Lowell Sun Election expert Doug Amy explains how choice voting can "inject new blood" into the elections of Lowell (MA), and give voters a greater incentive to participate. October 16th 2009 Haven't Detroit voters spoken enough? Livingston Daily In Detroit, there have been three mayors in the past two years and the current one has come under scrutiny. Perhaps a system like instant runoff voting will help bring political stability to motor city. August 21st 2009 Black candidate for Euclid school board to test new voting system Cleveland Plain Dealer Limited voting, a form of proportional voting, will be used in Euclid (OH), in the hopes of allowing better representation of minorities. July 2nd 2009 Reforming Albany New York Times FairVote's Rob Richie responds in a letter to the editor making the case for proportional voting systems to bring substantive reform to New York's legislature.