Doing Democracy: Are Elections Overrated?

KQED's Forum

KQED

News Commentary, News, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 12 October 2023

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Political corruption. Government shutdown battles. Legislative gridlock. Sometimes, it seems like ordinary citizens picked at random might do a better job governing than elected officials. In fact, that’s exactly the kind of lottery-like political system that is now gaining traction in academia. As part of Forum’s “Doing Democracy” series, we’ll talk about “lottocracy” and other ideas that seek to improve democracy and put ordinary citizens at the center of political power. Guests: Alexander Guerrero, professor of philosophy, Rutgers University - New Brunswick; author of the forthcoming book, "Lottocracy: Democracy Without Elections" Hélène Landemore, professor of political science, Yale University; author, "Open Democracy: Reinventing Popular Rule for the Twenty-First Century" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:36.9	Music From KQED.
0:50.8	From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Alexis Madrigal.
0:55.0	I struggle with how electoral politics works in this country. It seems to have optimized for some of the worst possible outcomes.
0:59.0	Just look at what's been happening in Congress. I mean, going back decades.
1:03.0	The system, always far from perfect and imprinted by the power of slavers,
1:08.0	now seems to be descending into a novel kind of tragedy.
1:11.6	At the same time, deep in my bones, I believe in democracy.
1:15.6	Our guest this morning offer us a way out, a way to keep the people power without some of the distortions of politics.
1:22.6	For our second installment in our doing democracy series,
1:25.6	a political scientists and a philosopher,
1:28.3	offer their ideas for democracy without elections.
	...

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