A special thank you from the Founder of The Democracy Group, Jenna Spinelle and an invitation for you to continue your journey in democracy at democracygroup.org.

If you enjoyed this podcast, consider listening to other podcasts in our network, subscribing to our newsletter, or listening to The Democracy Group network wide feed where you can hear episodes from across the network just like you did in "2022 Midterms: What's at Stake?".

This episode of the series comes from the How Do We Fix It podcast, hosted by Richard Davies and Jim Meigs.

We have a 2022 post-election show with a twist. Instead of focusing on which party is up or down, we open the hood and examine the engine of our democracy. Voters delivered a clear verdict: Most election deniers were defeated as many voters, especially independents, split their ballots, and shunned the extremes.

Our guests are Layla Zaidane, President and CEO of Millennial Action Project— the nation's largest nonpartisan organization of young lawmakers— and David Meyers, founding Executive Editor of the democracy newsletter, The Fulcrum.

In the days before the election, the media was full of warnings, and perhaps some hyperbole, about the perilous state of American democracy. Both of our guests and podcast co-hosts agree that many of the results were reassuring for the guardrails of the electoral system.

"I think when the dust settles we're going to feel pretty good about this election," Layla told us. "Things went really well," said David. "The continued use of voting-by-mail and early voting has gone a long way towards making sure more people had the opportunity to vote and not wait in very long lines."

We also examine the arguments over Ranked-Choice Voting, open primaries, and the need for a quicker vote account in some states where results took well over a week to come through.

In their conversation after the interview, Jim and Richard debate voting-my-mail, early voting, reforming the primaries, and how to encourage states to make improvements in vote tabulation. Richard favors limited action by Congress, but Jim is vigorously opposed to any federal reforms or interference in how states conduct their elections.

How Do We Fix It Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the The Great Battlefield podcast, hosted by Nathaniel Pearlman.

Lana Hansen and Sri Kulkarni join The Great Battlefield podcast to talk about their project 2 Million Texans, which is the first attempt to relationally organize the whole state.

The Great Battlefield Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the When the People Decide podcast, hosted by Jenna Spinelle.

Many state leaders are fighting to restrict access to this tool of democracy—or get rid of ballot initiatives altogether. While challenges to voting rights in states across the country captured the news cycle throughout much of the last two years, those same forces also seek to make it more difficult to engage in direct democracy.

With 12 states battling restrictive bills to limit citizen-led initiatives, the “democracy reform movement” is stepping up across the country to save them. If legislators are successful in making it harder for people to use ballot initiatives, will politics still be within reach of the everyday citizen? Follow along as these campaigns play out in Idaho and Missouri.

Learn more about the podcast at thepeopledecide.show and follow us on Twitter @PeopleDecidePod.

Resources

Show Me Integrity

The Fairness Project

David Daley's books Unrigged and Ratf**ked

When the People Decide Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the Politics is Everything podcast, hosted by Carah Ong Whaley & Kyle Kondik.

The Senate is coming down to a jump ball situation. Candidates need to avoid a bad toss, and can’t miss a foul or violation. Sabato’s Crystal Ball is still projecting a Republican gain in the House in the high teens or low 20s.

In this episode, we share our live discussion initially held on Twitter Spaces with resident experts Kyle Kondik, Managing Editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball and Miles Coleman, Associate Editor. We talk about our latest projections, what to watch, and the state of play in key Senate, House and Gubernatorial races in the final days of Election 2022. 

Links in this episode: 

Center for Politics on Twitter

Sabato’s Crystal Ball 

Secretary of State and Attorney General: What to Watch for Next Week in Key Statewide Contests

Politics is Everything Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the 70 Million podcast, produced by LWC Studios.

Weeks before the 2022 midterm elections, 70 Million creator and executive producer Juleyka Lantigua digs into the subject of criminal justice reform with three candidates from different parts of the country: Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Carolyn “Jiyoung” Park, and Durham County District Attorney, Satana DeBerry. All three spotlight inequities in policing and the courts, and call out areas in need of serious reform in the criminal justice system.

Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here.

70 Million Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the Our Body Politic podcast, hosted by Farai Chideya, spotlighting a powerful voting bloc: Generation Z. First, Farai interviews Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Democratic nominee for Florida’s 10th Congressional District, about how his Afro-Cuban identity and work as an organizer and musician help shape his political platform and views. Then Farai is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and host of MSNBC’s “Into America” Trymaine Lee who shares what he’s learned about the political interests of young Black voters attending historically Black colleges and universities in his new series, “The Power of the Black Vote.”

Our Body Politic Podcast

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This episode of the series comes from the Let's Find Common Ground podcast, hosted by Richard Davies and Ashley Milne-Tyte, featuring Mark Sappenfield, Editor of The Christian Science Monitor, and Story Hinckley, the paper's National Political Correspondent.

The United States has one of the highest news avoidance rates in the world. Tens of millions of Americans don't read, watch or listen to the news each day. The media are held in low regard by the public. So, is there a better way to report and analyze current events that satisfies readers' interests?

We're releasing this podcast less than two weeks before the midterm elections— a time when many news outlets have amped up their coverage, speculated about winners and losers, and put additional emphasis on the nation's deep partisan divides.

We discuss evolving news values with The Monitor and how reporters and editors are striving to highlight constructive solutions that unite rather than divide. We also hear about election coverage and why the media need to challenge readers, build trust, and report the news truthfully.

In this episode, we mention Common Ground Scorecard— a tool that helps voters learn which elected officials and candidates are seeking common ground on vital issues. The President, Vice President and every Senator, Member of Congress, and governor has a personal rating. Learn more: commongroundscorecard.org.

Let's Find Common Ground Podcast

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