Does "American PR" have a specific meaning yet? I'm sure I'll be in favor of it, whatever PR variant it is; but while I'm still ignorant, let me guess a little.<div><br></div><div>I doubt it's a mixed-member system. They're good, but the US, despite (or perhaps because of) being one of the most partisan countries around, has too much suspicion of "party machines" for that to catch on.</div>
<div><br></div><div>So that leaves ... I guess the most-probable options are global STV or STV in small multimember districts (3-5 members).</div><div><br></div><div>Again, these are both quite good systems I'd support. But if it's not too late to offer a suggestion... I'd strongly encourage you to consider something like <a href="http://wiki.electorama.com/wiki/PAL_representation">PAL representation</a>. It's certainly not the simplest system there is, but then no PR system is really simple. And as advantages you get:</div>
<div>-- High potential for 100% continuity (if the statewide gerrymander was fairly proportional, and if third parties don't pick up any seats). This is a HUGE advantage when selling to incumbents. I mean, seriously, tremendous.</div>
<div>-- Voters and/or peers have the real power to remove even the most well-encrusted incumbent if they sour on him or her. That is, it's voter-centric, not party-centric</div><div>-- Almost every voter gets their own local representative WHOM THEY VOTED FOR. This is absolutely something that would resonate with US voters, raised on tales of "No taxation without representation". </div>
<div><br></div><div>Check it out.</div><div><br></div><div>(And yes, I think that we can work together over PR, even if we don't see eye-to-eye on single winner systems.)</div><div><br></div><div>Jameson<br><div class="gmail_quote">
2011/12/3 David L Wetzell <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:wetzelld@gmail.com">wetzelld@gmail.com</a>></span><br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;">
<br>American PR is a coming. You must decide if you want to keep quibbling over the best single-winner election rule or push hard for a better mix of multi and single-winner election rules in the US.<div><br></div><div>
dlw<br>
<div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Rob Richie</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:rr@fairvote.org" target="_blank">rr@fairvote.org</a>></span><br>
Date: Sat, Dec 3, 2011 at 11:05 AM<br>
Subject: Re: how goes American PR?<br>To: David L Wetzell <<a href="mailto:wetzelld@gmail.com" target="_blank">wetzelld@gmail.com</a>><br><br><br>A little slow in getting our American PR-like plans drawn, but we'll have them done for hte whole country in early 2012 and heat up in our outreach... getting some related opeds.<div>
<br></div><div>Next year should be a good one for the idea -- lots of chances to talk about it.</div>
<div>Rob<div><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Nov 30, 2011 at 12:26 PM, David L Wetzell <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:wetzelld@gmail.com" target="_blank">wetzelld@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<br><div>I wonder if tea-partiers unhappy w. the Republican party might get in on it?</div><div><br></div><font color="#888888"><div>dlw</div>
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