The Metro:‘Something compelling about the democratic ideal’ — the case for more representative democracy
Osita Nwanevu is the author of the book, “The Right of the People.” Producer Sam Corey spoke to him about majoritarian democracy and whether some ballot proposals initiated in Michigan would create a more representative democracy in the state.
When it comes to our federal system, we often don’t have a representative, majoritarian democracy. That means the idea of “one person, one vote” often does not hold.
Gerrymandering favors one party to be elected in the House of Representatives. The electoral college overrides the popular vote. Money is considered speech, which means that people with more of it have more influence in our politics.
What would it look like to have a democracy that represents people more than it does geography, and to have a politics that doesn’t favor the rich over those with fewer means?
Osita Nwanevu is a writer at The New Republic and The Guardian and the author of the book, “The Right of the People.” And in it, he argues that if we had a majoritarian democracy, we would collectively be better off.
Producer Sam Corey spoke to Osita about that prospect, and whether some ballot proposals initiated in Michigan would create a more representative democracy in the state.
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