by Jack Santucci
I just discovered several papers on the determinants of ballot invalidity (informal voting) in Australia. Two recent conversations prompted me to look for these. The overarching issue is whether an invalid ballot reflects confusion or protest voting. You can find the papers in my reference list. The answer seems to be: both but more of the latter, especially among young people dissatisfied with the party system.
Read more…Feel free to comment!
Schattschneider (1942: 191) expresses deep skepticism about the ability of “public opinion” to hold government accountable. He goes on to argue for more internally disciplined political parties. Please evaluate this diagnosis and prescription in view of what you have learned this semester. Success does not mean citing everything. Rather, you should cite the readings that are relevant to your argument. Please confine your answer to 750-1,500 words. The usual guidelines apply.
Next month, Portland (OR) will announce the winners of its first elections under the single transferable vote (STV), AKA proportional ranked-choice voting. The effort to adopt this reform was, in part, an effort to make city council as diverse as the population it serves.
Will it? Or are other reforms the way to go? Time will tell, but here are some observations in the interim.
Read more…Portland (OR) journalist Maja Harris has an interesting post about the surfeit of candidates running in the city’s first STV elections. Does the experience so far reflect the perspective I built to understand Progressive Era adoptions of the same?
Read more…I just attended an excellent workshop on the Brightspace platform (courtesy of WNE). Here are thoughts on how it compares to other learning management systems (LMS) I’ve used.
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