America in One Room (“A1R”), a Helena Project designed and led in partnership with the Center for Deliberative Democracy at Stanford University, NORC at the University of Chicago, and By the People Productions, was a robust national experiment to reinvigorate the national political discourse.

It demonstrated the benefits of giving voters the time, space, and knowledge to become informed about the core issues facing Americans today. The event employed a model known as Deliberative Polling® to measure shifts in public opinion on five core issue areas before and after the event. A stratified random sample of 523 registered voters (“delegates”), recruited by NORC at the University of Chicago, was selected through a rigorous scientific process in order to represent the political, cultural, and demographic diversity of the American electorate.

A control group of more than 844 registered voters were also recruited, making the sample size exceptional in its scale and scope. From September 19-22, 2019, the delegates met in Dallas, TX, where they participated in moderated small group discussions and plenary sessions with competing experts and politicians. They deliberated in depth on specific policy proposals in the five issue areas identified in earlier polling as the most important to the voters in the current election cycle: immigration, health care, the economy, the environment, and foreign policy.

To aid in their discussions, delegates used a detailed briefing booklet which discussed policy proposals in the five issue areas, balanced with arguments for and against each proposal. This booklet was prepared and vetted by policy experts from across the political spectrum, as well as by a distinguished Advisory Committee.

The results from A1R show dramatic changes of opinion. The most polarizing proposals, whether from the left or the right, generally lost support, and a number of more centrist proposals moved to the foreground. Crucially, proposals that were further on the right typically lost support from Republicans and proposals that were further on the left typically lost support from Democrats. After intense dialogue across divisions, 95% of delegates agreed that they “learned a lot about people very different from me – about what they and their lives are like” and the percentage of delegates saying the system of American democracy was “working well” doubled from 30% to 60%. They also learned a great deal about America’s biggest policy challenges, and expressed a desire to stay more informed. It seems America’s divisions are not immune to deliberation.

During a time in which we face down some of the most critical decisions in our history, the country is supposedly more divided than ever. America in One Room proves that this doesn’t have to be the case. Again and again, our data shows that Americans of all genders, races, political parties, and socioeconomic classes can come together and build consensus, even on the most polarizing issues. It is Helena’s hope that these findings will help lead us beyond partisanship and toward an era where it is possible to create a democratic consensus among informed citizens.