By Phil Tajitsu Nash
Published November 28th 2003 in Asian Week
Seeking to address a perceived ìdemocracy deficitî in this country, over 500 people from 30 states, the District of Columbia, Ireland, New Zealand and other nations took part in a Claim Democracy conference at the new Washington Convention Center last weekend.
Over 100 presenters covered a full range of issues to secure, enhance and exercise the vote. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium were among the almost 80 organizations endorsing this call-to-action to support diverse representation, meaningful choices across the political spectrum, full participation before and after elections, robust public debate, efficient and effective election administration, and policy that corresponds with the will of the majority while respecting the rights and interests of those in the minority. The conference was organized by Democracy USA (www.DemocracyUSA.org), a new initiative by the Center for Voting and Democracy (www.fairvote.org).
Organizers and participants praised recent improvements in American democracy, but urged even more action until one-person-one-vote democracy is a reality for all Americans. For example, conference organizers pointed out that among the sad realities faced today by Asian Pacific Americans and all Americans as we work to improve American democracy are the following:
The majority of Supreme Court justices in Bush v. Gore declared that voters have no fundamental right to vote in presidential elections.
Percentage-wise, among those of voting age, the United States ranks 139th in the world in voter turnout in national elections since 1945, and turnout has been dropping, particularly among young people and particularly in local and state elections. Nearly a third of adult Americans are not even registered to vote.
The U.S. is 59th in world rankings of representation by women. Only 14 percent of the members of Congress are women, and the number of female state legislators has declined since 1998.
The U.S. Senate lacks a single black or Latino member, and the number of blacks and APAs in the U.S. House has declined since 1994. People of color are under-represented in nearly every state legislature.
More than 4.5 million Americans are denied the right to vote because of felony disfranchisement laws that disproportionately impact low-income communities of color, including one out of every eight black men.
Only four U.S. House incumbents lost in 2002, the fewest ever. State legislative elections are often even less competitive, with 40 percent of the races since 1996 not even being contested by both major parties.
Although the 2000 election debacle led to federal and state action to improve the infrastructure of our elections, many states are making it harder to vote, not easier.
Despite the passage of federal campaign finance reform legislation in 2002, money spent in campaigns and on lobbying at federal, state and local levels continues to have an excessively powerful impact on electoral politics and policy-making.
Among insights of interest to California readers was a report that voter turnout during the recent recall election, contrary to expectations, was the second lowest turnout in history. Arnold Schwarzenegger joined 24 others who won their gubernatorial elections with less than half of the votes. Steven Hill, author of Fixing Elections: The Failure of America’s Winner Take All Politics (www.FixingElections.com) said, ìOnly 40 percent of Californiaís eligible voters and 57 percent of registered voters cast a vote on Oct. 7. Long lines at some polls were due to the number of polling places being drastically reduced ó from 5,400 to 1,800 in Los Angeles County, for example ó rather than a huge influx of voters.î
The California recall election also highlighted the continuing lack of minorities and women as statewide executives in this country. Schwarzenegger continued a tradition of all California governors being a white male, except for Romualdo Pachecoís brief service as acting governor in the 1870s. With Latinos representing over a third of present-day Californians, it was a good first step that Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante and Peter Camejo were the gubernatorial standard-bearers of the Democratic and Green parties, respectively.
Given the hugely successful APA town hall meeting held just a few blocks away on Nov. 17, I was surprised to see just a handful of APAs at this Claim Democracy conference. Over 400 APAs, many of whom have not been active in the ongoing centuries-long struggle to defend and expand voting rights, were treated with respect by some members of the Democratic Party establishment as they sought to make their voices heard in the upcoming presidential primary. While it is important that APAs work first to ensure full and fair participation for their own community, I hope that they will not stop until these same rights are enjoyed by all Americans.
Over 100 presenters covered a full range of issues to secure, enhance and exercise the vote. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium were among the almost 80 organizations endorsing this call-to-action to support diverse representation, meaningful choices across the political spectrum, full participation before and after elections, robust public debate, efficient and effective election administration, and policy that corresponds with the will of the majority while respecting the rights and interests of those in the minority. The conference was organized by Democracy USA (www.DemocracyUSA.org), a new initiative by the Center for Voting and Democracy (www.fairvote.org).
Organizers and participants praised recent improvements in American democracy, but urged even more action until one-person-one-vote democracy is a reality for all Americans. For example, conference organizers pointed out that among the sad realities faced today by Asian Pacific Americans and all Americans as we work to improve American democracy are the following:
The majority of Supreme Court justices in Bush v. Gore declared that voters have no fundamental right to vote in presidential elections.
Percentage-wise, among those of voting age, the United States ranks 139th in the world in voter turnout in national elections since 1945, and turnout has been dropping, particularly among young people and particularly in local and state elections. Nearly a third of adult Americans are not even registered to vote.
The U.S. is 59th in world rankings of representation by women. Only 14 percent of the members of Congress are women, and the number of female state legislators has declined since 1998.
The U.S. Senate lacks a single black or Latino member, and the number of blacks and APAs in the U.S. House has declined since 1994. People of color are under-represented in nearly every state legislature.
More than 4.5 million Americans are denied the right to vote because of felony disfranchisement laws that disproportionately impact low-income communities of color, including one out of every eight black men.
Only four U.S. House incumbents lost in 2002, the fewest ever. State legislative elections are often even less competitive, with 40 percent of the races since 1996 not even being contested by both major parties.
Although the 2000 election debacle led to federal and state action to improve the infrastructure of our elections, many states are making it harder to vote, not easier.
Despite the passage of federal campaign finance reform legislation in 2002, money spent in campaigns and on lobbying at federal, state and local levels continues to have an excessively powerful impact on electoral politics and policy-making.
Among insights of interest to California readers was a report that voter turnout during the recent recall election, contrary to expectations, was the second lowest turnout in history. Arnold Schwarzenegger joined 24 others who won their gubernatorial elections with less than half of the votes. Steven Hill, author of Fixing Elections: The Failure of America’s Winner Take All Politics (www.FixingElections.com) said, ìOnly 40 percent of Californiaís eligible voters and 57 percent of registered voters cast a vote on Oct. 7. Long lines at some polls were due to the number of polling places being drastically reduced ó from 5,400 to 1,800 in Los Angeles County, for example ó rather than a huge influx of voters.î
The California recall election also highlighted the continuing lack of minorities and women as statewide executives in this country. Schwarzenegger continued a tradition of all California governors being a white male, except for Romualdo Pachecoís brief service as acting governor in the 1870s. With Latinos representing over a third of present-day Californians, it was a good first step that Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante and Peter Camejo were the gubernatorial standard-bearers of the Democratic and Green parties, respectively.
Given the hugely successful APA town hall meeting held just a few blocks away on Nov. 17, I was surprised to see just a handful of APAs at this Claim Democracy conference. Over 400 APAs, many of whom have not been active in the ongoing centuries-long struggle to defend and expand voting rights, were treated with respect by some members of the Democratic Party establishment as they sought to make their voices heard in the upcoming presidential primary. While it is important that APAs work first to ensure full and fair participation for their own community, I hope that they will not stop until these same rights are enjoyed by all Americans.
Election Day '09 was a roller-coaster for election reformers. Instant runoff voting had a great night in Minnesota, where St. Paul voters chose to implement IRV for its city elections, and Minneapolis voters used IRV for the first time—with local media touting it as a big success. As the Star-Tribune noted in endorsing IRV for St. Paul, Tuesday’s elections give the Twin Cities a chance to show the whole state of Minnesota the benefits of adopting IRV. There were disappointments in Lowell and Pierce County too, but high-profile multi-candidate races in New Jersey and New York keep policymakers focused on ways to reform elections; the Baltimore Sun and Miami Herald were among many newspapers publishing commentary from FairVote board member and former presidential candidate John Anderson on how IRV can mitigate the problems of plurality elections.