Between gerrymandering and requirements on petition signatures, it is very tough to make the ballot, a Harvard reader says.
Early voting for the November election has begun. Many voters are going to be disappointed by what’s not — that’s right, what’s not — on their ballots.
What will be lacking? Candidates.
According to the website BallotReady.org, “a staggering 67% of races that appeared on ballots in November 2022 were unopposed or uncontested.”
There are two reasons for this. The first is gerrymandering. The second is election law.
In one slice-and-dice example, political mapmakers in Illinois managed three years ago to help award Democrats 14 seats in Congress. Republicans were left with three.
Now, when was the last time you saw a minor party or independent on your ballot? Years ago, perhaps? That’s because Illinois election law effectively excludes them.
New candidates must gather many more petition signatures than do Republicans and Democrats. In order to survive all but certain ballot challenges, they must roughly double what is required.
What a heck of a way to run a democracy.
I’m left to wonder: How does one throw the bums out when there’s only one bum on the ballot?
Scott Summers, Harvard
This letter to the editor was originally posted by the Chicago Sun Times at https://chicago.suntimes.com/letters-to-the-editor/2024/10/21/uncontested-races-election-donald-trump-impaired-fop-endorsement-gaza-israel-letters