In early 2023, Chicago witnessed an animated local election season with no shortage of personal attacks, stark ideological differences, and drama typical of the city’s politics. However, like many other Chicago voters, I had a difficult time choosing a candida... More »
Vote-by-mail (VBM) has garnered national attention since 2020 as a system to increase voter turnout by allowing citizens to exercise their voice safely and conveniently, especially given the new wave of voter suppression efforts. What many proponents have fail... More »
I spent most of my day one Friday in August listening to speeches on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, while dutifully manning the phones for constituent calls. This is not an activity I’d recommend. While I agreed with about half of the... More »
When the COVID-19 pandemic was declared a national emergency on March 13, the country was in the middle of primary election season. As states franticly adjusted plans for voting, Wisconsin’s state Supreme Court overruled Governor Tony Evers’ executive order to... More »
Youth voter participation remains an intractable problem for holding truly representative elections in America. Young voters, ages 18 to 29, consistently make up 20% to 22% of the electorate, which is defined as those who are eligible to vote. But due to consi... More »
BallotReady is an online voting guide for local, state, and federal elections. It provides a free guide with information on more than 20,000 candidates across 25 states and Washington, D.C. that helps voters make better-informed decisions. The Director of the ... More »
Patti Solis Doyle, political strategist and former campaign manager for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign, talks about Latino voters in the US and Chicago, and the 2016 presidential race. More »
When political affiliation is shown on ballots, candidates’ quality has a lower impact on voters' decisions than when it is not; otherwise, voters are more influenced by candidates’ quality and suitability for the job. More »
New research finds evidence that development, compulsory voting laws, and decisiveness of elections have distinct effects in developed and developing countries. More »
How effective is participatory budgeting at increasing government accountability and responsiveness in municipalities? Programs in Brazil find that allowing residents to choose preferential projects improves their social welfare and shifts constituent prioriti... More »
On this week’s episode of Chicago Policy Radio, Claire O’Hanlon sits down with Geoff Garin to talk about the results of the 2012 presidential election, the changing demography of the electorate, third parties, and how polling has changed over the course of Mr.... More »