Reform in 2023
As the year draws to a close, The Fulcrum is starting to look ahead to what may happen next year in the world of political reform and anti-polarization efforts. We invited leaders in those movements to share their hopes and plans for 2023, and we began publishing their thoughts this week.
Democracy won in 2022. Now, we have to set the bar higher.
At RepresentUs, one of the largest political reform organizations in the country, leaders are developing plans to build on all that was accomplished in 2022, from expanding the use of ranked-choice voting to empowering small-dollar donors to successfully defending the ballot initiative process.
But there’s no time to coast on recent victories, writes RepresentUs’ director of political programs, Megan Caska:
We must recognize that despite all the noise about polarization, the vast majority of Americans agree that tackling corruption should be a top priority. We, the American public, are overwhelmingly united in opposing partisan gerrymandering, a corrupt practice that allows political parties to rig elections. We’re united behind efforts to stop dark, unaccountable money in politics. We agree that elected officials shouldn’t be able to trade stocks while in office. And we believe that we must continue to be vigilant against the threat of anti-democratic forces in our politics, and reject election deniers up and down the ballot.
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Read more about recent wins and future plans.
A season of public rituals offers hope more than fear
From Election Day to New Year’s Day, Americans have more opportunities to get together than perhaps any time since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. And these chances to strengthen our relationships can put us on the right footing for a productive, less polarized 2023, writes podcaster Richard Davies.
As with the election, this Thanksgiving had more than its share of doubters. Leading up to the long holiday weekend we were deluged by media warnings that the turkey might be hard to swallow if you had the bad luck to be seated next to a family member with different political views than your own. We were fed the theory that with such deep political divides Thanksgiving could be a time of great tension. No doubt it was for some, but where is the evidence that this year was much more fraught than usual?
Read more about how the naysayers got things wrong.
Podcast: The connection between the energy supply and political polarization
Carey King of the Energy Institute of the University of Texas at Austin joined a recent episode of “You Don’t Have to Yell” to discuss how the last 80 years of American history have shown a connection between energy consumption, economic output and political polarization.
Also in the news
Republicans lead charge to ban noncitizens from voting in local elections (The Guardian)
Florida's effort to charge 20 people with voter fraud has hit some roadblocks (GPB)
Jennifer McClellan poised to become the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress (NBC News)
No evidence of misconduct in first day of Kari Lake election-challenge trial (Arizona Republic)
Upcoming events
Stewardship of Spirituality Conversation - Living Room Conversations - Dec. 22
The Search for Purpose Conversation - Living Room Conversations - Dec. 28
Democracy Happy Hour - Fix Democracy First - Jan. 4
Restoring Faith in American Leadership - Institute for Global Leadership - Jan. 9
