America Can Have Better Elections

While founded on high ideals, American democracy was flawed from birth: The “⅗ compromise” that counted enslaved people as less than fully human; the exclusion of women from the franchise; giving each state two seats in the Senate, regardless of size; and more. Our history is punctuated by the ongoing struggle to preserve and perfect our democracy.

We are in such a moment again now.

I was appointed by President George W. Bush as a Commissioner of the Federal Election Assistance Commission and chosen by the Commissioners to be the first Chairman. In that role, I saw that America could learn many things from other advanced democracies. Voter turnout is higher in many European countries, as is the overall integrity of election administration, as measured by the Electoral Integrity Project. And in most other democracies, voters have more choices, coalitions are more common, and politics are generally (though not absolutely) more civil.

Today, our democracy is being tested as never before. Conspiracy theorists spread lies about election administration. Authoritarians campaign for office by promising to limit cherished constitutional freedoms. And threats of political violence have become commonplace as natural competition between our major parties has turned toward hyper-polarization.

While no single solution will cure America of what ails her for the next 250 years, I am enthusiastic about the potential of a simple election reform to strengthen our political culture.

We should consider reviving fusion voting.

A lawsuit, In Re Malinowski, is working its way through New Jersey’s court system, ultimately heading to the New Jersey Supreme Court. Malinowski, a Democrat, was nominated by the young New Jersey Moderate Party in 2022. Because of a law passed just over 100 years ago, the state denied the Moderate Party’s attempt to have Malinowksi appear on its ballot line in addition to the Democratic line.

This practice of two parties “fusing” on a single candidate was once legal in every state, but now in only a few (including New York and Connecticut). Historically, fusion voting was the political home of abolition in the mid-19th century and humane workplace reforms later on. Where fusion is legal, smaller parties can play a constructive role in the process; politicians have incentives to build larger coalitions, appeal to more voters and compromise for the public good.

The existential threats to democracy posed by authoritarian leaders distract from the more pedestrian risks to election administration. Our voting system is sloppy. While the outcome of the 2020 election was clear, in a truly close election, we would be justifiably concerned about the possibility that not every vote was counted.

But we can’t complete the hard work required to fix the piecemeal system administered by county and state officials until we have leaders who are motivated by the common good. That is going to require serious — but feasible — change to the rules governing our elections.

I am proud that Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs will be hosting a conference on November 15 to highlight steps — like fusion voting — that New Jersey can take to protect democracy, notably including fusion voting.

Scholars and academic leaders from across the political spectrum argue that reviving fusion voting in New Jersey would take some of the toxicity out of our politics, restore civility, and provide incentives for coalition building across the aisle. It has even brought together my old boss, former Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (a Republican), with my friend, former U.S. Senator Robert Torricelli (a Democrat), to join forces in support of fusion voting.

We can overcome the challenges that face us today, embracing the strengths of our country, rising above our differences and focusing on the founding principles of America. They were lofty principles, and the fact that we have never fully lived up to them is not reason to abandon them. We have been tested in the past and found a way forward. That way is never smooth, and special interests may oppose needed reforms. But people of good will have carried the day in earlier eras, and we can do so again on our own. 

DeForest Soaries served as Secretary of State of New Jersey under Gov. Christine Todd Whitman from 1999 to 2002 and served as the first-ever chair of the U.S. Election Administration Commission from 2003 to 2005.