Despite the misconception that democracy reforms are a polarizing issue, most young lawmakers agree that there is room to modernize our institutions, create more efficiency and transparency, and encourage greater civic engagement. The numbers prove there’s an appetite for action: only 38 percent of Americans report having a great deal or fair amount of trust and confidence in the U.S. Congress. Americans are much more trusting in their state (57 percent) and local (67 percent) governments, although this is slightly lower than historical averages. In addition, only 9 percent of Americans have confidence that Democrats and Republicans can work together in Congress, down from 23 percent in 2008. Future Caucus and its legislators are committed to rebuilding trust in democratic institutions. Improved civic engagement and common-sense reforms to election and voting policies can create a more representative and accessible democracy.
Rooted in the understanding that political polarization presents new and unique obstacles to modern policymaking, the Innovation Fellowship cultivates the next generation of national leaders with the skills to build bipartisan coalitions and pass effective legislation.
An informed citizenry must be aware of and engaged in policy decisions, requiring openness and accountability from policymakers. This can be achieved through increased transparency (expanding access to decision-making and increasing access to information) and increasing citizen participation. Oversight divisions like the Office of Inspector General and Government Accountability Office aim to evaluate government conduct for misuse or wrongdoing, ensuring transparency and performance improvement.
To encourage a more participatory democracy and a representative government, young state legislators are leading reforms including modernizing voter registration through policies like online and automated voter registration, increasing access to voting through policies like vote-by-mail and early voting, and innovating systems of voting through reforms like ranked-choice-voting or open primaries. These reforms are geared towards increasing engagement and trust in elections: if people do not think elections are fair, then they do not see a reason to participate. Younger generations are much more pessimistic than older ones about the state of American democracy. To strengthen our democracy today and into the future, we must bolster citizens’ confidence in our democratic institutions, especially among young Americans.
There has been a sharp increase in the amount of inaccurate information targeting the local, state, or national democratic processes which negatively impacts the public’s confidence in elections and democracy. In the 2020 election, this included false information about inaccurate ballots and incorrect information on voting processes. Finding ways to combat misinformation is quickly becoming a topic of legislative debate among leaders across the political spectrum. Ensuring the integrity of information and elections while maintaining First Amendment rights can be achieved, and legislators are advancing thoughtful policy solutions tackling the dissemination of misinformation, deepfakes, and protections for elections workers.
Policymakers face the challenge of capitalizing on AI’s momentum while also ensuring responsible AI innovation and implementation. Within government, if used responsibly AI presents opportunities to improve, modernize, and strengthen inefficient processes.
The every 10-year process of redrawing boundaries for voting and representation has a tremendous impact on political representation. The redistricting process varies by state, with some states having strong protections against gerrymandering while others do not. State courts and the U.S. Supreme Court have been pulled into redistricting in recent years, including weighing in on competing district maps in a state. Lawmakers can improve the redistricting process by building a fair and transparent process, such as by establishing independent redistricting commissions
Ranked-choice voting (RCV) and other alternative voting systems such as Final 4 and Final 5 voting allow voters to rank multiple candidates on a ballot in order of preference rather than making a single choice. These voting methods are innovative solutions to political polarization, allowing voters to communicate more about their preferences than the selection of one candidate, and incentivizing more civility among political opponents. Experts across the political spectrum agree there are merits to RCV and alternative multi-choice voting systems because there is no advantage to one political party over another.
Reforming campaign finance laws to include elements of public finance expand opportunities for candidates to gain access to resources and level the playing field when running for office. This is particularly important to younger candidates and young people considering running for office that does not have access to the same level of resources as older candidates or more traditional candidates. Public financing options increase access to public service and encourage citizen participation as well as increasing accountability and transparency.
This policy tackles a core problem — lack of diversity within the legislature. It can be cost-prohibitive to serve in the legislature which can discourage citizens from a variety of different backgrounds and income levels from serving in public office. Low legislator pay makes it particularly challenging for young people and people starting families to serve in these roles. There is a significant amount of variance in legislator salaries and per diems among the fifty states. Depending on the state, some legislators are full-time while others work part-time and often hold jobs in addition to their legislative duties. Some states have not had increases in pay in years, for example, Louisiana lawmakers have not seen a raise in over 40 years. Lawmakers across the country are advancing increases to legislator compensation in order to recruit and retain talent that historically has been unable to afford to serve.
Professional staff is essential for the function of the legislature and democracy. In addition to increasing legislator pay, it is necessary to provide personal and legislature-wide staff by increasing salaries to properly resource the work the legislature is doing. For example, “1 in 8 congressional staffers in D.C. aren’t paid a living wage,” which negatively impacts the longevity of congressional staffers losing valuable institutional knowledge and the diversity among staff members. Staffers in the New York State Assembly and the Illinois House of Representatives have organized to start a union to advocate for higher pay and better benefits.
EFFECTIVE POLICYMAKING IN ACTION
Beyond the Bubble
Strengthening Democracy Innovation Fellows in Denver
The Democracy Reform Task Force advanced a national conversation on reforming government and engaged members in peer-to-peer dialogues and expert-informed discussions.
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