Pennsylvania
Governor, Ed Rendell, created the Pennsylvania Election Reform Task
Force through Executive Order 2004-11. The bipartisan, 13-member panel
focused on a range of issues and reforms designed to increase voter
turnout and inspire confidence on the state's electoral system. The
Task Force issued its final report to Gov. Rendell on May 12th. Among
its conclusions, were the belief that instant runoff voting and
proportional representation are relevant and ought to be studied further,
as they affect both voter confidence in elections and voter turnout.[Read the Final Report - .pdf]
U.S.
Congressman Alcee Hastings (D-FL) has re-introduced his Congress
Commission Act to study whether the House of Representatives should
increase in size and be elected by proportional voting systems. As
national debate about redistricting increases, we applaud Rep. Hastings
for seeking to spur debate and understaanding of how best to provide
fair representation, more electoral competition and greater
accountability.
Illinois
Senator Richard J. Winkel Jr. and Representative Paul D. Froehlich
introduced legislation calling for the state constitution to be amended
to bring back cumulative voting. The plan would change the House of
Representatives from a 118-member body elected from 118 districts to a
117-member body elected from 39 districts of 3 members each, using
cumulative voting.