Why America Needs Proportional Representation

Represent the true voice of American voters

End gerrymandering and rigged redistricting

Make every vote count and every election competitive

A Nation Divided

Democrats and Republicans have been pulling apart for 50 years. We live in an “Us” against “Them” world with little mutual respect.

In early 2020, Lee Drutman laid out the threat to American Democracy:

"Self-governance depends on electoral losers accepting their losses, and on electoral winners giving the losers the freedom to dissent and criticize, and a fair chance to compete in the next election.

Hyper-partisanship threatens all this by raising electoral stakes to impossible heights, and making the other party seem so extreme and dangerous that the thought of them winning is simply unacceptable.

Once the parties polarize in a two-party system, the danger is that polarization becomes a self-reinforcing dynamic - a doom loop.^[1]"

Are We in a Doom Loop?

President Trump did not accept his loss in 2020. Democratic prosecutors charged Trump with crimes allegedly committed to retain power. They hoped stop him from running in 2024. The allegations included inciting an armed mob to disrupt the certification of electoral college votes, and soliciting the Georgia Secretary of State to change the Georgia vote count in his favor.

Trump won back the presidency in 2024 with a 312 to 226 electoral vote victory and a 49.8% to 48.3% advantage in the popular vote.^[2]

We are in a gerrymander war. Gerrymandering is America’s favorite and most effective method of election cheating. Parties rig election districts to win more seats than they deserve.

Donald Trump is working to establish an authoritarian regime in America.

The System Feeds the Doom Loop

We seldom vote for third-party and independent candidates because we fear that will help a major party candidate we detest. Third parties are crushed. Our only choice is between two warring tribes. The blame falls squarely on traditional Choose 1 plurality voting.

Geography also divides us. In most states and districts, only one party has a chance to win. A small percentage of the voters decides each election in that party’s primary. The general election winner is preordained.

Votes for a losing candidate in a one-sided race have no effect. Technically, a vote that does not help elect a candidate is a "wasted vote". Proportional Representation (PR) is the only way to make wasted votes rare.

In contested races, primary voters want warriors who can raise money to win close races. Dark money comes in from large corporations and the ultra-wealthy via SuperPACs. Worse, we are so divided by cultural issues we cannot work together on economic issues. The donor class has a powerful incentive to keep us divided.

Officeholders who make compromises with the opposition may be primaried. The threat is real because primary voters fear the other party. Voters want candidates to fight for their side.

News outlets pander to their target audience. Outrage is manufactured. News is spun to fit the preferred narrative. Algorithms feed us what we want to hear. Hostility intensifies with each campaign.

Proportional Representation (PR)

With PR a party that wins 40% of the vote wins 40% of the seats. Third parties have a fair chance and a real voice. Gerrymandering does not work.

Voters and politicians have more parties to choose from. Voters can reward candidates who stand for the people and punish those who are in the thrall of the donor class.

Every PR election is competitive. Your vote counts because it helps your party gain seats.

We focus on two methods: Mixed Member Proportional Representation (MMP) and multi-member districts.

MMP-USA Mixed Member PR

MMP systems preserve the election of legislators from single-member districts. At large members are also elected to ensure each party wins a percentage of the seats equal to the percentage of the votes they receive.

We propose MMP-USA, a system that achieves accurate proportional representation with a minimum number of at large seats.

Multi Member Districts

Multi-member PR systems elect several representatives from each district. Various methods can be used to apportion the seats. We will cover multi-member district proposals in the coming weeks.

The US House of Representatives could adopt proportional representation using multi-member districts without a constitutional amendment. An MMP system would require an amendment, as would any method of PR for the US Senate.

Extremists?

Critics claim PR will let in extreme parties who will obstruct the legislature, but we already have extremists and obstructionists. Our two-party war breeds obstruction. PR will give officeholders opportunities to form coalitions to defeat obstructionists.

The Time is Now

Many Americans are losing faith in democracy. Democracy has worked since 1776, but it is time to improve it.

Proportional representation will better represent American voters. We will decide how many seats each party wins. Voters and politicians will have more parties to choose from. Third parties will have a fair chance and a true voice.