We hear it all the time, “Sacramento is broken.” Those saying it often throw up their hands, as if to say that the problem is too big to fix.
Yes, the challenges are great, but California voters can take a big step forward to fix Sacramento by passing Proposition 14, the Open Primary on the June 8 ballot.
California’s current primary election system is dominated by party activists and entrenched special interests, forcing candidates to run to the political extremes. This leads to a legislature in which common ground solutions are often eschewed in favor of ideological party purity.
Under Proposition 14, candidates would have to appeal to a broad electorate, because every primary voter would have the opportunity to vote for any candidate, regardless of party affiliation. This structure – similar to what we use to elect city council members – would create room for a new generation of problem-solvers in the legislature.
That’s why business leaders who comprise the Silicon Valley Leadership Group back Proposition 14. We are Democrats, Republicans and Independents. But first and foremost, we are Californians. And we are dedicated to getting our state back on track. Please – join us. For more information, visit svlg.org.
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IF only the Silicon Valley Leadership Group had studied top-two systems, it would not be backing the idea. It is not used in any nation in the world, and there are 140 nations that have free elections. It is only used in Louisiana (for the past 35 years) and Washington state (starting in 2008). Political scientists who have studied polarization and partisanship in state legislatures say there is no correlation between openness of primary system, and polarization in state legislatures. Just google Seth Masket and Boris Shor.
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