Redefining Democracy: How Approval Voting Could Transform U.S. Politics

Care More Be Better: A Podcast For Sustainable Social Impact and Regeneration

Corinna Bellizzi

Personal Journals, Earth Sciences, Society & Culture, Documentary, Science

5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 27 October 2024

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this interview episode (originally published in 2022), we explore how approval voting could change the political landscape in America with Aaron Hamlin, Executive Director of The Center for Election Science. Aaron shares his journey from political intrigue in grad school to advocating for a voting method that lets voters express a broader range of candidate preferences. Approval voting, a simple yet impactful system, allows people to vote for as many candidates as they approve of, with the candidate receiving the most votes winning. By tackling vote splitting and enabling voters to support multiple candidates, approval voting seeks to foster representation and discourage extremist candidates.

Aaron offers insights into the success of approval voting in Fargo, St. Louis, and upcoming initiatives in Seattle, as well as the broader potential for state and even national adoption. We discuss how this system can reduce polarization, give voters more genuine choices, and improve political continuity by enabling policies that reflect broader support.

Key Highlights:

What is Approval Voting? Aaron breaks down the mechanics of approval voting, explaining how it differs from the "choose one" voting system and ranked-choice voting.
Real-World Success Stories: Approval voting has seen success in Fargo and St. Louis, with campaigns expanding to other cities and states.
How Approval Voting Reduces Vote Splitting & Extremism: By letting voters support multiple candidates, approval voting helps prevent extremist candidates from capitalizing on vote splitting, a common pitfall in primary elections.
The Road to National Adoption: Aaron shares the Center for Election Science's roadmap to implementing approval voting on a national scale, allowing states to decide how their electoral votes are assigned.

Take Action

Listeners inspired by this episode can learn more and join local chapters to advocate for approval voting through The Center for Election Science. Visit ElectionScience.org to take action, join the community, and get updates on campaign progress across the country.

Tune in to rethink what it means to vote for a better democracy, where every vote is valued, and every voice matters!

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello and welcome to Care More Be Better, a Circle B podcast. Today I invite you into my wayback
0:06.6	machine to revisit an episode from May of 2022 in which I had a discussion with Aaron Hamlin,
0:13.7	who is an election science specialist. We got to talk about ranked choice voting and approval
0:19.9	voting and how these systems of voting
0:23.0	could really change our democratic system overall.
0:27.4	It would change the way you vote, how your voice is heard, and could even erase this
0:33.4	penchant for a two-party system.
0:36.4	I hope you can come to today's episode with an open mind
0:40.4	and think deeply about how something like this, how an overhaul of our election system
0:46.5	could really change things for you. With that, here's Aaron.
0:50.1	There are so few times when, as a citizen that we can't be ignored. And one of those few times is when we vote.
0:58.8	And we get this tool to be able to say, like, who sits in those offices, decides the policies that govern our day-to-day lives or spend the large amount of tax dollars.
1:13.3	And we only get one chance to do that. And we are given this highly ineffective tool. Welcome to Care More Be Better, a podcast for people like you
1:20.7	who care about the social impact of conscious companies and everyday heroes. Hear inspiring stories
1:27.3	from those who put people in planet before profit and personal gain.
1:31.3	You'll learn how you can make a difference.
1:33.2	Vote with your dollars and get involved today.
1:36.1	Here's your host, Karina Belizei.
1:41.1	Today we're going to learn about approval voting and how it could change the face of politics in America.
1:47.0	As I introduce you to Aaron Hamlin, executive director of the Center for Election Science, a not-for-profit focused on empowering people with voting methods that strengthen democracy.
1:58.0	He has written articles for Deadspin, Bust Magazine, and The
2:02.2	Telegraph, as well as many more. And he's been featured in popular mechanics, NPR, inside
	...

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