The Center for Election Science
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Mission Statement
The Center for Election Science (CES) is a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to empowering people with voting methods that create a just and strong democracy.
About This Cause
Background Founded in 2011, CES is a national, nonpartisan organization that helps people improve their communities by changing the way they vote. Guided by rigorous scientific review, we study and advocate for alternative voting methods that empower voters—not politicians. We conduct research and in-depth analysis of these alternative voting methods, and their impact, at the national level. At the same time, we are a trusted backbone organization for grassroots activists—providing research, educational materials, and campaign organizing support for local organizations working to enact change. Why Voting Methods There is nothing more critical to our election outcomes than the voting method—the information we’re permitted to put on the ballot and how that information is calculated. The voting method affects whether there is vote splitting or if spoilers are possible. It even affects whether candidates consider their viability before running rather than just their merits. Our current method of plurality voting—which forces voters to choose only one candidate—does not allow for a robust and vibrant democracy that represents the will of the people. But it doesn’t have to be this way. To address these problems and advance a democratic society ruled by the people, CES studies and advocates for alternative voting methods. We emphasize approval voting—a single-winner voting method that allows voters to choose as many candidates as they want. All votes count equally, and the candidate with the most wins. With approval voting, voters can always honestly support their favorite candidate, which has important secondary consequences that positively affect the entire election dynamic. Letting voters support their honest favorite can lead to a more representative winner, encourage more diverse candidates to run, keep good ideas from being unfairly marginalized, and ultimately lead to better public policy. What We've Accomplished So Far CES is the only organization in the US that highlights voting methods that allow the voter to honestly support their favorite candidate. We are unique in that we focus on maximizing utility and proportional outcomes while offering practical solutions. Our recent accomplishments include: —Collaborated with local activists on the campaign that led to the successful Fargo Measure 1 for approval voting. Passing with 63.5% of support in November 2018, Fargo became the first city in the US to adopt approval voting. More than 120,000 city citizens will benefit from better smarter elections starting in 2020. —Provided election consulting for ballot initiatives in five states and guided several organizations to move to approval methods—including the Texas Green Party, Young Democrats of San Francisco, and The Webby Awards. —Developed a one-of-a-kind online content library of information on electoral systems and voting methods. We provide educational videos, in-depth articles and analysis, and advocacy toolkits. —Through traditional and digital media, we’ve increased public awareness and understanding of alternative voting methods. Our work has been cited in Vox, The New York Times, Huffington Post, and Inside Philanthropy. —Delivered dozens of presentations across the country for political conferences, electoral reform symposiums, private election companies, political parties, and civic organizations. What's Next —Educating 318k St. Louisans about approval voting. We are currently supporting a local group, STL Approves, that is working to bring a top-two, nonpartisan approval voting primary to the city of St. Louis. Polling indicates that this initiative is very popular already, but with the voter education we provide, it is very likely that St. Louis will become the 2nd city in the U.S. to adopt approval voting —Educating the broader public about how broken voting is leading to bad outcomes. We are conducting polling throughout the 2020 presidential election cycle to show how the spoiler effect and vote splitting—two problems common in our current voting method—are electing unrepresentative, bad winners —Helping grassroots activists learn the skills necessary to organize for change in their local area. We've launched five chapters across the country and have plans to launch at least three more before the end of 2020. These chapters are places where grassroots activists can learn the communications, organizing, and fundraising skills necessary to enact change. They can also meet others who are passionate about reforming our broken elections so they can work together.