Voter turnout is down, but why fewer voters show up is complicated. Competition and duty help explain it, but only partially. Even with Count My Vote changes taking effect this year, don’t expect higher voter turnout. A New Low for Democracy As a nation, we don’t turn out to vote very consistently, and we’re getting […]
The Two Things That MIGHT Impact Voter Turnout and What They Mean for Count My Vote
December 23, 2014 by
Reading right now: “The Myth of the Rational Voter: Why Democracies Choose Bad Policies.”
August 4, 2011 by
Lately, I’ve not had a lot of time to read. But when I have had time, I’ve enjoyed reading the wonkish and pointed “The Myth of the Rational Voter” by Bryan Caplan. It’s an economist’s look at why, as the sub-title says, voters tend to support bad public policies. The reason, Caplan argues, is not […]
Utah is becoming even more Republican…if that’s even possible.
June 1, 2011 by
Last night, or early this morning, I engaged in some hyperbolic jousting over Twitter with the inestimable Deb Henry, a candidate for Vice Chair of the Utah Democratic Party. Amidst the trash talk, Deb reminded the world why she is running for Vice Chair of the Utah Democratic Party (yes, our state has one). http://twitter.com/heydebhenry/status/75806018684207104 […]
Random number generators and cable news commentators
May 27, 2011 by
The source of all those exit polls, hot air, statistics, and prognosticators fodder… xkcd: Sports. See also “Mark Twain.” (“There are lies, damn lies, and then there are statistics.”)
Why did the GOP lose NY-26? Not the reason you think.
May 26, 2011 by
The winning Democrat only won with 47%, just one point less than Barack Obama got in the district in 2008. Not exactly an awe-inspiring performance. Democrats won only because a third-party candidate—self-proclaimed tea partier Jack Davis—spent a reported $3 million of his own money. Absent Mr. Davis as a spoiler—he got 9% of the vote—Democrats […]
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