Fixing the Electoral Cycle

Ben Newton and Harrison Fell

Mrs. Alldredge

History 8

7 June 2017

Fixing The Electorate:

A Systematic Change

Can we fix party gerrymandering? Should we revert the presidency to one term? The electorate is wrought with flaws, gerrymandering is one of those many flaws. California has already attempted to fix this problem with an independent coalition; however, people can never be truly bipartisan. Could we replace this coalition with computers? If we used federal censuses to find population density and inputted the information into computers. The presidency is filled with innumerable amounts of bureaucracy. When elected he or she always attempts mild policies in order to be re-elected. Would it be wiser to reform this system to one six-year term? Can we transform the electorate?

          How do we solve Gerrymandering? Gerrymandering is a practice that takes place every ten years. The residing party draws the lines for their district to increase their chances of success. It began in the year 1812(FairVote); Governor Gerry, a governor from Boston, signed a bill to assist his party in the next election cycle. This began a process of party manipulation that has seeped into modern politics. In 2012, The Democratic Party received 66% of the popular vote for the House of Representatives and 21 of the 27 seats (Washington Post). This same phenomenon can also be seen on the other side of the aisle in Pennsylvania (Washington Post). Democrats received over 51% of the house vote but less than a third of seats in the House (Washington Post). Gerrymandering a systemic problem which makes your vote matter less than it should.

What factors should dictate districts? There are two rules which the Federal Government has instituted for redistricting. Equal population is a rule established for congressional districts; however, it does not trickle down to state and legislative districts as strictly (Atlantic). The second criteria is equal distribution of race and ethnicity. Sadly, this rule is not enforced properly, as many minorities are packed into super-condensed districts (Washington Post). These two standards go far, but not far enough. We should include population density and set stricter quotas regarding race and ethnicity should be included. While rules and quotas hamper corruption, we can never truly solve this system, without taking power away from the parties. California has already begun this process with an independent coalition, and other states have tried implementing similar policies. An algorithm would cost less money and would possess more veracity. We can solve Gerrymandering.

The current concept behind two terms is that when a president is elected, he serves one four year term. He is then the automatic representative for his party for the next election. If he wins, serves four more years in a 2nd term. Two terms are the maximum amount of terms a president can serve unless the vice-president takes over within two years of the president's first term. This concept was passed by Congress in 1947 and ratified by the states on February 27, 1951, and we have used this system ever since (National Review). The president spends too much time worrying about a reelection campaign, they fear political retribution, and they don’t have an abundance of time to the point where they are not working because they have nothing to do. The possible solution for this is one six year term. This allows the president to not spend time on their reelection campaign, they know how long they are going to be serving so they can get everything done that they promised, and it will reduce the fear of political retribution.

The problems discussed have many possible alternative solutions. One could decide to limit the presidency to only one four year term or set up coalitions or regulations to stop Gerrymandering. Why are our solutions better? Four years is not a long enough time for the president to make a lasting effect. The six-year terms are not necessarily meant for the president to have less time, but for him to cut out busywork and have time to focus on what is best for the country. Not having to worry about re-election campaign or fear of political retribution, which means more time focusing on his actual duties as president. As discussed previously, California has already created an independent coalition to solve the systemic problem, but it is not possible for any person to truly be unbiased. The coalition itself is far less cost effective than an algorithm. Regulation always possesses a loophole no matter how stringent the implementation. It is for those reasons that we believe our solutions are superior to any alternative course of action.

The electorate is a convoluted mess. There are systems which lack purpose or function and policies that favor one party over the other. We can’t just solve the problem, but we can start. Identifying the issues that are mired within the electorate and doing our best to eliminate them is the first step to creating real change. Implementing these solutions requires all our assistance, and more. Changing the U.S. electorate is a gigantic task, and it requires much work and effort just raise Congress’s brow. This is an arduous journey that will have many bumps in the road, yet this is the best for our country.

Works cited:

FairVote.org. "Gerrymandering." FairVote. Fairvote, n.d. Web. 17 May 2017.

Dfraper, Robert. "The League of Dangerous Mapmakers." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 19 Feb. 2014. Web. 17 May 2017.

Revolvy, LLC. ""Mid-Atlantic English" on Revolvy.com." All Revolvy Quizzes. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2017.

Ingraham, Christopher. "This Is the Best Explanation of Gerrymandering You Will Ever See." The Washington Post. WP Company, 01 Mar. 2015. Web. 25 May 2017.

"Top Ten Reasons to Lower the Voting Age." National Youth Rights Association. NYRA, n.d. Web. 17 May 2017.

Epps, Garrett. "Voting: Right or Privilege?" The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 18 Sept. 2012. Web. 17 May 2017.

"Thomas Jefferson on Politics & Government." Fam Guardian. Fam Guardian, n.d. Web.

"Thomas Sowell: Misinformed Electorate, Not Trump, Is Real Danger." GaltsGulchOnline. GaltsGulchOnline, n.d. Web.

"Can an Algorithm Eliminate the Unfairness of Gerrymandering?" Priceonomics. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 May 2017.

Ingraham, Christopher. "This Computer Programmer Solved Gerrymandering in His Spare Time." The Washington Post. WP Company, 03 June 2014. Web. 22 May 2017.

Adams, Myra. "Six Years and Out: It's Time to Change the Four-Year Presidential Term."National Review. National Review, 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 25 May 2017.