from SLATE today:

The 2018 election was a body blow to partisan gerrymandering. Four states enacted redistricting reform that will diminish the role of politics in drawing district lines; more elected Democratic governors who can veto partisan maps. Another state, North Carolina, replaced a Republican state Supreme Court justice with a liberal who fought gerrymandering as a civil rights attorney. No matter what happens in 2020,...

It seems clear that we need a Federal law to be able to prosecute and punish those responsible for attempting to prevent other Americans from exercising their right to vote.

As we are seeing in Georgia right now, it is unacceptable that a partisan official can be in charge of voter registration.   A significantly disproportionate number of minority voter registrations are being denied or delayed, obviously because the official in charge believes those votes would mainly go to the other party's candidates. 

In a proper democracy, this would be a completely non-partisan operation.   This needs to cha...

We live in an age where justices for the Supreme Court are often not picked for being non-partisan, brilliant, and even-tempered.  And these are life-long terms, meaning a partisan, unfair Justice might shape American policy for 40 years.

Perhaps it is time to create term limits on Justices.  16 years?  20 years?  It has to be long enough that the Justice will serve multiple administrations and not be just a tool for any given...

Today's Editorial in the New York Times discusses Maine's coming state-wide election that will utilize Ranked Choice Voting.  Observers have noted a kindler, gentler campaign in which candidates tell voters that it's okay to vote for them as their 2nd choice.  This means that a candidate will go out of their way not to antagonize potential voters of their closest rivals, leading to more positive campaigns.

The editorial al...

NJ is poised to become the next state to enact Automatic Voter Registration.  It's a big step forward for a better democracy every time another state does it.   

The governor of WA is set to sign a bill that includes automatic voter registration, Election Day registration, pre-registration for 16- and 17-year-olds, and a state version of the national Voting Rights Act.  This is a major step forward for voting reform that all states could replicate.

Minnesota GOP lawmakers are trying to pass a bill to outlaw ranked-choice voting (RVC).  Right now in Minneapolis, because of RCV, the city council includes 3rd party candidates, is ethnically diverse, and is roughly equal in men-women.  It is a perfect example of why RCV is superior to the old-fashioned system of voting.

It appears as though the gun control debate will be back in 2018 and likely 2020 to play a significant role in the elections.  As a reminder, here is the actual text of the 2nd Amendment:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

This 18th century sentence was not written as carefully as it could have been, leaving wiggle room...