Taking Back the Vote

photo: Andrew Lichtenstein/Aurora

Courting coalition: Jesse Jackson leads a voter rally in West Palm Beach.

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• Center for Voting
• Lani Guinier
• Eric Olson
• Politics
• Elections and Voting

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It's a small step, though, he says, in a country where voter turnout hovers at the halfway mark, and is lowest among the poor and uneducated. "Proportional representation can have far more impact in serving to include many more voices in our democracy, but it's a long battle. IRV is something I think we can pass in a year or two, and that will help us move to even better reforms, as it makes room for more parties."

If such a battle will be joined, however, it will take massive grassroots, multiracial efforts. "Right now the slogan in Florida is 'Let Granny Vote,' " says Ron Walters, "because, the feeling is, if granny's vote counts, our votes may be counted, too. That's why Jesse Jackson has been down there speaking in synagogues and holding hands with rabbis. What we don't know now is how long that coalition can stay mobilized."