An image of a Proportional Electoral College model for the 2016 election

By Ben Chapman, President of Illinoisans for Ranked Choice Voting

Stamped on every newspaper’s op-ed submission guideline page is the same message: “Submissions must cover prominent topics in the news and provide insightful commentary on current issues.” Granted, the particular rhetorical formulation varies, but the meaning persists.

That guideline keeps topics such as Electoral Reform tantamount taboo except during those rare periods when a bizarre outcome in a high-level election merits deep analysis. But it’s not just the fault of editorial columns that electoral reform goes unmentioned, it’s also the fact that, to partisans, there is always a bigger fish.

And I don’t argue that. Kids in cages is a problem. Rising income inequality is a problem. Racism in our Executive Branch is a problem. But at some point we must address the nagging pebble in our shoe that makes each step of progress just slightly more agonizing.

We need to talk about Electoral Reform.

Why? Because we live in a democracy. The most basic tenet of this democracy is Rule by The People — or, as in our Representative Democracy, a Rule by people selected by The People. The strength of that selection process is directly correlated to the strength of our democracy. In fact, that selection process is our democracy. It’s all we’ve got. We can have a free press, whistleblowers, a Bill of Rights, and a judicial system, but without our ability to vote, then none of our grievances need ever be addressed.

“But,” you protest, “we have elections, and no one has yet proposed eliminating them. So what’s all this fuss about?”

We do indeed have elections — but The People’s trust in them wanes steadily. And it’s no surprise why.

Members of all parties bemoan the outsized influence of money in our politics and its ability to unilaterally determine the victor of a race. Our President is chosen through an archaic method based more on arbitrary tradition than modern logic. In a tightly contested race, a last-minute independent candidate can flip an outcome 180 degrees. Congressional districts are openly shaped not in the interests of voters, but in the interest of party bosses. And looming over us is the cloud of foreign influence on the minds of voters.

From top to bottom, we need a rehaul. A massive rehaul. But to do that, we have to start talking about it.

Standing up for electoral fairness isn’t something that can only happen when electoral reform is “topical” or “newsworthy.” It’s a responsibility we citizens of a democracy must shoulder every day.

So how do we move forward? What do we talk about?

We should talk about implementing Approval Voting or Ranked Choice Voting measures which reduce the spoiler effect, increase voter expression, and give third parties and independents a fair shot. We should talk about establishing a reasonable Presidential electoral system, such as a Proportional Electoral College, that redistributes the decision making power from just a few swing states to the nation at large, so every citizen in every state will have an important vote — as they should. We should talk about using independent redistricting committees or converting to proportionally representative multi-member districts that will help us temper gerrymandering and once again make our elections competitive. And we should work to educate our citizens about the dangers of foreign influence on things such as our social media feeds so our elections can be decided by the unpolluted minds of Americans.

We can fix this. We can restore faith for Democracy in America. We can make every voice matter and we can once again become that shining beacon of hope for a citizen-run democracy.

But we can’t wait until it becomes sexy.