Democracy is not supposed to be by minority rule. Yet, with increasing frequency, the Electoral College has put the presidential candidate in the White House who was rejected by the majority of voters. The Senate majority leader, either by indefinitely withholding or hurriedly rushing the conformation of presidential nominations, has packed the Supreme Court with justices whose narrow conservative views do not reflect those of the majority of Americans. A single senator can block consideration of legislation that is supported by a majority of voters, and a small cohort of far-right House members nearly forced a government shutdown against the will of the majority. And this is just a small sample that doesn’t even begin to address gerrymandering, the filibuster, voter suppression, and many other issues in Congress.
Minority rule is not what the Founding Fathers had in mind, but it is the reality of today’s hyperpartisan political environment. Not even the president has this kind of unfettered power. The president can veto legislation, but that veto can be overridden by Congress.
What can we do to return our democracy to majority rule? Vote for candidates who will fight to eliminate the arcane rules in Congress that empower minority rule.
