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I'd like to see a run-off election if no candidate gets >50% of the popular vote.
For example, if there are three or more candidates, and none of them get >50% of the popular vote, a run-off election will be held between the two highest vote getters.
This will encourage more people to vote for third party candidates without fear of "throwing their vote away" because they will know that if he/she doesn't win, there is still a good chance that they will be able to vote for their second choice (or against the candidate that they definitely do not want to win).
I've also heard of some places using a system whereby voters can chose more than one candidate and give a ranking as to first, second, third, etc. choice. If their first choice doesn't get >50%, then their second choice is counted.
I dont think people would hate it as much if politicians did not sell out.
^ this.
It's too much of a US VS THEM situation and it's really catty. Too much smearing campaigns, too much of the politicians personal lives in the media.. and just.. way too much "Here is MY opinion of ____". They focus on aiming to gather votes, and that's it. Nothing truly ever gets done.
So, this is why, IMO, we need a third party. This could be a good thing, or a bad thing. Since this is America, it will turn out to be a 3 way cat fight
I thnik lookig atthe parties people pretty much get what they want. The problem is what they want is a pie that they presonally get a share of without contributing to the pie. Its a give me a bigger slice even if it is on the chiense crdit card. It lately has gone even furhter i that it gotten tot eh pont hat we will passon the debt to our grand children.
I don't hate the two party system, I just think it could be made better. I have a few things that I would change to take the power away from the political parties, both Democratic and Republican, and give it back to the people.
1. Turn all primaries for public office into open primaries. The top two vote getters in the primary would face off against each other in the general election. It wouldn't matter if both candidates were from the same party or were independent.
2. Take the redistricting power away from political parties and politicians. Make every district competetive and heterogenious.
3. Take the money out of politics. No private cash can be given to politicians. All federal elections would be used with public money.
The two-party system isn't the problem with American politics. The problem is that lobbyists can legally pay off legislators while writing bills for them.
A parliamentary democracy like they have in Britain has its merits. I like the idea of not shutting out third parties and forcing the parties to work together to create a coalition government which in theory would have a moderating effect. However, the British system allows elections to be called by the government in power which creates a strong competitive advantage for the incumbent. This is, however, checked by the ability for parliament to issue a vote of no confidence.
I really think the presidential system is outdated. It allows for too much executive power with little to no check. It results in a cult of personality rather than maintaining time-proven policies. The presidential system allows for a high degree of instability because we are voting for individuals, not policies.
Finally, an improved government would have stronger constitutional limits on what it can spend money on and stronger protection of individual liberties than we have today.
Currently, our politicians show their allegiance to their party before they show any interest in the people who elected them. A No Party System is a better replacement. Each candidate runs on their own. Why do they need money? They need money because Americans are comfortable with the idea that the burden of responsibility lies solely with the candidate and that Americans themselves have no responsibility but to watch the charade from the comfort of their living rooms. Their involvement in the process is to throw money at it.
The best replacement system is one where elections are publicly funded. No signs, no advertisements, no banners. Each candidate would have a website and/or printed literature available, all paid by public funds in equal measure to all candidates. No one (citizen, corporation, union, or group) can contribute any money to the system. Candidates would travel around at public expense to speak at public forums and debates that include all candidates, no exclusions. The public would be well-informed of the opportunity to attend these events.
Now, for those who think this isn't enough, isn't it the responsibility of the public to attend such events? Shouldn't the work be done by the electorate to find out where a candidate stands and who they wish to vote for? At some point, the political parties used our sense of hopelessness against us because they currently determine every direction an election goes using the money they extract from the fools amongst us to brainwash the masses into voting for what always ends up being the lesser of two evils. The sooner we abandon the monster of our two-party system, the better off we'll all be.
The media's sole responsibility is to give us access to the process. No opinions, no polls, no nothing unless it's to expose corruption or wrongdoing. But here too Americans like their work done for them. They put their brains on hold and let polls and popular opinion guide their choices. Millions vote because they want to pick the winner like it's a game. How often does it occur to us to pick the BEST person for the job and let these party shenanigans and media manipulations fall on deaf ears? It certainly must not be often because NOTHING has changed in my lifetime.
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