Citizens Assembly

Last month a majority of British Columbia voters approved replacing winner-take-all elections with a proportional voting system. This policy outcome was not unprecedented, but the method used to select it was. The final recommendations were derived from the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform, a group of 160 randomly selected individuals from British Columbia. This group met for one year and produced the electoral reform package that was placed on the ballot.

In the last chapter of his new book,… more

The first-year honeymoon is over, and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger now must decide whether to engage in an epic battle to transform politics in California. It looks like the Govern-ator is up for the task, putting reforms like legislative redistricting on the top of his agenda.

But the challenges he faces are daunting. Solving the budget crisis will require compromise with a Democrat-dominated legislature, but reforming government means attacking a dysfunctional legislature. Schwarzenegger may be forced to choose between his… more

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is right. California needs a government that's less partisan and better reflects the many voices in its diverse population. The disconnect between the government and the governed threatens the state's ability to solve its problems and plan for the future.

But there are better ways for the governor to solve the redistricting problem than allowing retired judges to redraw the boundaries for political districts, as he proposed in his State of the State speech Wednesday. California's single-seat,… more

Political scientists have long observed that what is good for the individual may be bad for the group. Under a ruthless dictatorship, for example, the people might want to overthrow their leaders and establish a democratic government. But it is very risky for any particular individual to participate in such an uprising. The individual bears all the costs, but the public at large receives the lion's share of the benefits. Economists call such goods "public goods."… more