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Dear
Senator Kerry,
As I look over your record and your stand on current issues, I am dismayed.
Are you really offering me an alternative to George W. Bush in most areas?
With the exception of women's choice and the environment, you seem to be
offering only a modified version of Bush's current and proposed policies.
But I don't want Bush's policies, which is why I am desperate to get him out
of office.
I will be completely frank and tell you that I would prefer, in this
instance, to vote for Dennis Kucinich this fall as he is closer to my views
on most subjects than you are. Not because the Greens are not offering a
terrific choice of candidates--they are. But I know how the system works and
right now only the DNC is truly in a position to dethrone King George.
So. Here is what I truly want to know. Will you fight for REAL election
reform from the Oval Office so that people who want to vote for a Green or a
Socialist or a Libertarian or what have you can not only cast that ballot,
but cast it knowing that it has a chance of actually being worth something
other than a vote of conscience?
Senator, the changes I would really like to see take place in this country's
electoral system are:
CLEAN ELECTIONS: No more extra clout for moneyed special interests. No more
elected officials spending more time on the trail fundraising than in their
office working for the people who put them there in the first place. Every
candidate has the same amount of money and airtime. All are on equal footing
rather than subject to the golden rule of "He who has the gold rules". "The Buying of the President" and
Public Campaign
OPEN DEBATES: Voters can't be expected to vote their conscience without
first hearing from all of the valid candidates. This means letting in all of
the qualified candidates, not only the Republican and Democratic ones.
Open Debates
ELECTION HOLIDAYS: for federal elections, with extended polling hours so
that all people who want to vote have the opportunity.
How an election holiday promotes democracy.
REGULATED VOTING MACHINES: There has to be accountability and a legitimate
paper trail. And we need to bring the job of counting the votes back into
the public sector and set the system up so that there is complete
transparency.
No Black Box Voting
RANKED VOTING: Voters should be expected to vote their conscience, not for
the lesser of two evils. The current system shuts out so many candidates and
minimizes the options and power of the voter at the ballot box. At this time
many people are clamoring for Instant Runoff Voting. However, it still has a
"spoiler" effect, so that instituting it could still result in a Green
causing a Democrat to lose (or vice versa). Condorcet voting seems to be a
better and more fair alternative for a ranked voting set up.
What's
wrong with the current system?
Election Information: Comparing systems
Accurate Democracy
voting system assessment
REFORM THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE: Institute ranked voting or proportional
awarding here.
PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION: It’s time to put an end to gerrymandering and
“protecting” incumbents. It's time for the Congress to be a mirror of
America's electorate. We know for a fact that the bulk of Americans are not
wealthy white people. Where are the poor Latina congresswomen? Where are the
middle class African American Senators? (I know this last request will be
the hardest to institute, but surely you can lay the groundwork for
switching to this type of set up at least in the House.)
How proportional representation works
Senator, I wish you the best of luck in your election bid. I hope that by
November I will have heard enough from you to make me place a checkmark by
your name because I want to vote FOR YOU instead of AGAINST George W. Bush.
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