Reforming American Elections

Congressional districts are required to contain roughly the same number of people. To account for demographic change, states draw new Congressional maps every 10 years, a process which has become very political in recent years, as political parties have tried to maximize the number of seats they can expect to win. Some believe there should be federal guidelines prohibiting overly partisan map-drawing, while others believe that this is something each state should be allowed to decide for itself. Would you be in favor of federal action regulating the redistricting process?

Small rural states are currently over-represented in the Senate, relative to their population. The framers designed the Senate with the intent of giving small states more of a voice in the federal government, but some argue that this has gone too far. Would you be in favor of designating Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico states, giving cities more political representation in the Senate?

In a presidential election, a state’s electors (votes in the Electoral College) typically all go to the candidate who wins the majority of the vote in that state. This means that most voters have little say in the election because their state is solidly controlled by one political party. Some feel a fairer system would be to distribute electors based on who wins Congressional districts. Two states (Maine and Nebraska) already do this, but some feel that such a change should be federally mandated. Another proposal is to allocate electors proportionally based on state vote share, and some believe the Electoral College should simply be replaced by the national popular vote. Which proposal are you most in favor of?