FairVote acts to transform our elections to achieve secure access to participation for all, a full spectrum of meaningful ballot choices and majority rule with fair representation. As a catalyst for change, we build support for innovative strategies to win a constitutionally protected right to vote, universal voter registration, a national popular vote for president, instant runoff voting and proportional voting.
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Reform News
New from the Blog
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The Supply Side: Alternative Reform Approaches to Campaign Finance
January 26, 2012Last Saturday marked the two-year anniversary of the controversial U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. Citizens United overturned decades of campaign finance law by extending First Amendment protection to political expenditures by corporations and unions. Most reformers focus on how to affect the supply of money in politics, whereas FairVote focuses on electoral reforms that will reduce the demand for money in politics by reducing the impact of money.
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South Carolina voters better enjoy it while it lasts
January 20, 2012With the South Carolina primary just around the corner on Saturday, the preferences of South Carolina voters are of intense interest to the nation -and of course to the candidates swarming the states. Events, polls, debates and the media are all focused on South Carolina voters. But after Saturday? Forget it.
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RCV for the GOP: Mitt Romney, Fractured Conservatives, and the Importance of Rules in Determining Election Outcomes
January 20, 2012Some conservatives wonder how Mitt Romney has become the favorite for the nomination in a Republican party moving rightward. Others embrace Romney. One problem for believers of both views is the plurality voting rule that means winners don't have to secure a majority. Plurality voting arguably has been negative for all parties involved in the nomination race—whether Romney or his more conservative challengers. The solution, FairVote argues, lies in the adoption of an alternative framework: ranked choice voting.
FairVote: Your Primary Resource in 2012
// January 20, 2012
FairVote has been analyzing and commenting on elections in general and presidential primaries in particular for two decades. This year FairVote has assembled key resources to understand this year's nomination contests, with regular analysis on its blog and in published commentary. Don't miss these new reports and commentaries.
Delegate allocation rules in 2012 GOP race
Open, closed and mixed primaries, state-by-state This report details who is allowed to vote in every state holding a presidential or congressional primary this year.
South Carolina Primary: One Candidate May Easily Win All Delegates By Rob Richie and Elise Helgesen
South Carolina Voters Better Enjoy it While it Lasts by Katie Kelly and Rob Richie
RCV for the GOP: Mitt Romney, Fractured Conservatives, and the Importance of Rules by Sheahan Virgin
Understanding How Proportional Representation Worked in NH by FairVote
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Research Highlights
FairVote Facts: Senate Vacancies
- Number of U.S. Senators appointed without election since the ratification of 17th Amendment: 182
- Number of U.S. House members ever to serve without election: 0
- Number of states that always fill U.S. Senate vacancies by election: 4
- Number of states that always fill U.S. House vacancies by election: 50
For more FairVote reports, visit the Research & Analysis section.
Federal Primary Runoff Elections and Voter Turnout Declines, 1994 - 2010
Many states currently use runoff election systems during primaries for statewide federal posts. However, it appears that the two election runoff system leads to high turnout declines and a less representative second election.
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Our Media
Featured Podcasts
Howard Dean on IRV--Howard Dean Discusses instant runoff voting on Radio Vermont's Mark Johnson Show.
John Anderson and the Redistricting Game--FairVote's former chairman helps unveil a new gerrymandering computer game, with an introduction from Rep. John Tanner.
The Slow Motion Stampede--FairVote's Rob Richie and Kentucky Secretary of State Tray Grayson talk about solutions to the broken presidential primary system on NPR's "All Things Considered."
Featured Video
A New Era of Electoral Reform - The 2010s and the 50-Year Cycle
