How to Make Politics Work Better

The number of female and non-white representatives in the U.S. Congress has increased in recent years, but is such progress nearly enough to make up for the long-standing underrepresentation of women and minorities? Perhaps the U.S. should embrace a trend found in other representative democracies, and set gender and racial quotas for Congress? Around 90 countries globally employ gender quotas, and more than 30 countries also reserve seats in their parliaments for representatives of minority groups.

In polling season, election observers from wealthier nations descend upon Lagos, Caracas, Kingston and other places. They scrutinize voter registration and privacy provisions, preside over the counting of ballots and triple-check the accuracy of transmissions. Now, imagine foreign academics and policy wonks sharing tales of endless lines in Arizona, or hanging chads in Florida, or the thousands of New Yorkers mysteriously removed from the voter rolls. Let’s do unto ourselves what we do to others — and invite the world to monitor American elections.

Facebook has proved it can’t police itself. The social media giant has become unwieldy, and a target for bad actors with nefarious aims, from those inciting an ethnic cleansing in Myanmar to Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. elections. It’s time for Mark Zuckerberg to shut Facebook down — at least for the days preceding Election Day, and definitely for the week immediately after, when the results could be in serious flux as states count mail ballots.

A recent study found that nearly four-fifths of Americans are lying about their voting record in order to make it seem like they vote more often than they do. That sense of civic duty — or at least the desire to appear to have a sense of civic duty — is now informing political campaigns and get-out-the-vote efforts to use social pressure and shame to lead people into the voting booth.

Want a serious televised political debate about the issues? Remove the audience. While televised political debates follow rules to help ensure civility and quiet, research suggests that even a seemingly innocent laugh from the audience can influence viewers at home.

Drive-thru ballot boxes. Walmart election centers. Sheriffs dropping off ballots door-to-door. High schoolers serving as election judges. These are just a few of the things that have turned Colorado into one of the top voting centers in America. In the 2020 presidential election, Colorado was home to five of the nation’s top seven counties for voter turnout, according to OZY’s exclusive voter participation analysis with Washington-based data and consulting firm 0ptimus.