Editor’s note: Fifth in a series on proposed reforms to build a better democracy in Chattanooga, in Tennessee and beyond.
The American political process, as shown by the deep unpopularity of our elected officials, is plagued with fundamental flaws that all but ensure our representatives act against the majority will of the public.
These backward incentive structures have transformed the foundation of democracy — the idea that the governed govern themselves — into its very antithesis. A privileged few dictate the livelihood and future of everyone else.
But there are also problems outside government bureaucracy that contribute to a society effectively governed by a handful of oligarchic billionaires. One appears where the political process begins: in the voting booth.
Whenever it’s time to head to the polls for a general election, voters are almost always forced to make a choice among a severely limited pool of candidates — usually just two, Republican and Democrat.