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In this issue: Avoiding costly runoffs, voting rights, depolarization and engaging young voters

The Fulcrum
March 03, 2022



TOP STORY

Texas could avoid another high-cost, low-turnout runoff, say RCV advocates

David Meyers

Texas kicked off the 2022 primary season on Tuesday and, as expected, multiple high-profile races are headed to runoff elections. But the state could have saved millions of dollars by switching to an alternative system known as ranked-choice voting, according to a new analysis.

The Lone Star State requires candidates to receive a majority of the primary vote in order to advance to a general election. And when more than two candidates seek a nomination, it becomes possible no one will reach that threshold in one round of voting. That’s what happened this week in races for attorney general, lieutenant governor and a handful of U.S. House races.

But if Texas used ranked-choice voting, also known as instant runoff, there would be no need to spend millions on an extra round of voting, when turnout historically drops dramatically, say the RCV backers.

Keep Reading...

DEBATE

Our democracy has problems. Women have solutions.

Cynthia Richie Terrell

These are trying times, no doubt. But never fear - There is hope. And that hope is the shared power and potential of mobilized women to forge a new movement for a 21st-century democracy, writes Cynthia Richie Terrell, executive director of RepresentWomen, and Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, a special projects fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice.

VIDEO

Depolarization in the age of misinformation

Our Staff

On this episode of the Braver Angels podcast called Depolarization in the Age of Misinformation, Ciaran O’Connor hosts David Blankenhorn, president of Braver Angels, and Jonathan Rauch, author of The Constitution of Knowledge, for a wide-ranging discussion on depolarization in the age of misinformation, bridge-building across the epistemological divide, and the Braver Angels approach to controversial content.

POP CULTURE

Ariana Grande, and the power of musicians to engage young voters

Our Staff There is a long history in our country of celebrities encouraging Americans to vote and becoming engaged in our democracy. And that continues today.

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Contributors

Conservatives attacking Americans’ First Amendment rights

Steve Corbin

To advance racial equity, policy makers must move away from the "Black and Brown" discourse

Julio A. Alicea

Policymakers must address worsening civil unrest post Roe

Sarah K. Burke

Video: How to salvage U.S. democracy from the "tyranny of the minority"

Our Staff

What "Progress" should look like, and what we get wrong

Damien De Pyle

The long kiss goodnight: Nancy Pelosi and the protracted decay of public office

Kevin Frazier
latest News

How statelessness gambles with the lives of American families

Samantha Sitterly
10h

Podcast: Is reunification still possible?

Our Staff
10h

Pin the blame on the other party

Rachel Bonar
26 September

Dark magic: Drug companies and the art of deception

Robert Pearl
26 September

Sit down with Deepa Iyer of Building Movement Project

Debilyn Molineaux
26 September

Societal disruption: Artificial intelligence

Kevin Frazier
25 September
Videos
Video: Expert baffled by Trump contradicting legal team

Video: Expert baffled by Trump contradicting legal team

Our Staff
Video: Do white leaders hinder black aspirations?

Video: Do white leaders hinder black aspirations?

Our Staff
Video: How to prepare for student loan repayments returning

Video: How to prepare for student loan repayments returning

Our Staff
Video: The history of Labor Day

Video: The history of Labor Day

Our Staff
Video: Trump allies begin to flip as prosecutions move forward

Video: Trump allies begin to flip as prosecutions move forward

Our Staff
Video Rewind: Trans-partisan practices and the "superpower of respect"

Video Rewind: Trans-partisan practices and the "superpower of respect"

Our Staff
Podcasts

Podcast: Is reunification still possible?

Our Staff
10h

Podcast: All politics is local

Our Staff
22 September

Podcast: How states hold fair elections

Our Staff
14 September

Podcast: The MAGA Bubble, Bidenonmics and Playing the Victim

Debilyn Molineaux
David Riordan
12 September
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