The Democracy Index : Why Our Election System Is Failing and How to Fix It

Heather K Gerken

ISBN 10: 0691154376 / ISBN 13: 9780691154374

Verlag: Princeton University Press Jul 2012, 2012

Beschreibung

Neuware - 'Gerken has written a compelling and practical plan for improving the conduct of American elections. The Democracy Index offers a politically sophisticated strategy for converting those forces that typically frustrate reform--partisanship and localism--into engines of reform. Given the evident shortcomings in the ways in which citizens register to vote, cast their ballots, and have their choices counted, the subject of this book could not be more important. And Gerken's lively and engaging prose makes it a genuine pleasure to read.'--Thomas E. Mann, coauthor of The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How To Get It Back on Track.

Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 9780691154374

Bibliografische Details

• Titel: The Democracy Index : Why Our Election System Is Failing and How to Fix It
• Verlag: Princeton University Press Jul 2012
• Erscheinungsjahr: 2012
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN-10: 0691154376
• ISBN-13: 9780691154374
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Zustand: Neu
• Abmessungen: 224B x 145 H x 15 T Millimeter Breite: 224 mm, Höhe: 145 mm, Tiefe: 15 mm
• Gewicht: 295 Gramm

Über diesen Titel

Inhaltsangabe

Despite howls for reform, the only thing separating us from another election disaster of the kind that hit Florida in 2000, and that almost struck again in Ohio in 2004, may simply be another close vote. In this lucid and lively book, Heather Gerken diagnoses what is wrong with our elections and proposes a radically new and simple solution: a Democracy Index that would rate the performance of state and local election systems. A rough equivalent to the U.S. News and World Report ranking of colleges and universities, the Index would focus on problems that matter to all voters: How long does it take to vote? How many ballots get discarded? How often do voting machines break down? And it should work for a simple reason: no one wants to be at the bottom of the list. For a process that is supposed to be all about counting, U.S. elections yield few reliable numbers about anything--least of all how well the voting system is managed. The Democracy Index would change this with a blueprint for quantifying election performance and reform results, replacing anecdotes and rhetoric with hard data and verifiable outcomes. A fresh vision of reform, this book shows how to drive improvements by creating incentives for politicians, parties, and election officials to join the cause of change and to come up with creative solutions--all without Congress issuing a single regulation. In clear and energetic terms, The Democracy Index explains how to realize the full potential of the Index while avoiding potential pitfalls. Election reform will never be the same again.

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Heather K. Gerken is the J. Skelly Wright Professor of Law at Yale Law School, where she teaches election and constitutional law. She is a frequent media commentator on elections and has written for the New Republic, Roll Call, Legal Affairs, and the Legal Times.