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Center for Civic Design

Our goal is to make every interaction between government and citizens easy, effective, and pleasant. We bring civic design skills in research, usability, design, accessibility, and plain language to improve the voting experience, make elections easier to administer, and encourage participation in elections. Through our work, we have helped hundreds of election officials build their skills and capacity, and touched millions of voters in small but important ways. Across all of our projects, our research suggests that the voter journey—all of the information, decisions, interactions that get a voter from an intention to vote to actually casting a ballot—is a story of seemingly small barriers that can add up to a vote not cast. Our projects and research starts from the causes of those burdens. By smoothing out those barriers, our work can help more people vote, and strengthen democracy.


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United States Capitol building
The United States Capitol building in Washington DC during the golden hour

Do Six Political Factions Cause Congressional Gridlock?

A recent congressional voting record report of our 535 delegates in D.C., published by the Institute of Legislative Analysis, found that significant voting behavior shifts have occurred within both major political parties over the past three years.

According to tracking from YouGov and Marquette Law School, roughly 28% to 35% of self-identified Republicans explicitly state they are not Trump- MAGA fans. Meanwhile, data published by the Pew Research Center shows that 67% of Democrats are frustrated with their political party.

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Windows of a house

Low-angle view of two dormer windows protruding from townhouse roof

Grace Cary, Getty Images

Go Home

The distance from Washington, D.C., to my hometown of York, Pennsylvania, is 100 miles. When I worked as a Congressional staffer in D.C., I could get out of town and be back where I grew up in about an hour and a half, at least so long as I avoided rush hour traffic. Those last miles as I crossed the Pennsylvania-Maryland border brought a sense of gratitude for the relationships I would be keeping up. At my nephew’s soccer game, at an English-style pub with my long-time best friends, with my mother at the breakfast table having a local newspaper in her hands, life was ordinary.

I would return to work in D.C. feeling grounded. I felt better connected to

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People talking near a river

Enjoying the Wild Mile in Chicago, Illinois

Jerry Attere

How a Floating Eco-Park Is Bringing Wildlife Back to the Chicago River

If you were to walk next to the Chicago River on North Ave, you’d find a ramp tucked away between venues and restaurants, seemingly leading down to river itself. Walking down it, you wouldn’t just find the river, but a sprawling park full of lush wildlife—the Wild Mile, a planned 17-acre floating eco-park along the North Branch Canal of the Chicago River.

Collin Quinn comes to the Wild Mile a few times a year to canoe along the river with his friends. “We go other places, but this is a real easy, convenient place for us,” he said. “Occasionally, we’ll see ducks or fish or animals in there. I like seeing it grow every year.”

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