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Nevilledog

(51,122 posts)
Fri Jun 11, 2021, 07:11 PM Jun 2021

Representative Don Beyer has reintroduced The Fair Representation Act



Tweet text:
FairVote
@fairvote
Today let’s talk about the #FairRepAct, which was just reintroduced in Congress by @RepDonBeyer

Whether you’re completely new to this reform, or a long time fan, there are lots of benefits to discuss so let’s get started.

http://bit.ly/2YDIC7n
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7:18 AM · Jun 11, 2021


https://www.fairvote.org/fair_rep_in_congress#why_we_need_the_fair_representation_act

Our country is ready to reform our elections. Now is the time for Congress to act. The Fair Representation Act is the bold, comprehensive solution that solves our problems with partisan gerrymandering and uncompetitive elections, and encourages politicians to represent everyone, not just their base.

Partisan gerrymandering has only gotten worse in an era of sophisticated technology and polarized voting patterns. Redistricting has become a fraught endeavor, replete with corruption, controversy, and years of expensive litigation. Because the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that partisan gerrymandering was a political issue beyond the ability of federal courts to decide, an act of Congress is the only way to end gerrymandering in all states.

However, our problems go beyond gerrymandering: Single-winner districts no longer work well for American democracy. They lock most voters into congressional districts that are increasingly skewed toward one party, and leaves too many voters unrepresented and powerless to affect outcomes. Millions of Americans -- whether urban Republicans, red-state Democrats, independents, women and communities of color -- are dramatically underrepresented, with little chance of fixing this at the polls.

The Fair Representation Act helps fix this. Voters would elect representatives with proportional ranked choice voting in larger multi-winner districts. Safe "red" and "blue" districts would be a thing of the past, as every district would elect both Republicans and Democrats in proportion to their level of support. With proportional results, there would be no gerrymandering, every election would be competitive, and our votes would be far more powerful than they are today. Senators would also be elected with ranked choice voting.

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