Post-election analysis



<[link removed]>



Hi Friend,



On Tuesday, tens of millions of Americans cast their ballots to determine the
outcome of the 2022 election. As reformers, we recognize there is a lot on the
line this midterm — the integrity of our democracy is at stake, and a historic
number of ballot initiatives to reform our election system are taking center
stage in numerous jurisdictions.



However, despite the possibility of historic voter participation
<[link removed]>
in this midterm election, very few seats were actually decided on Tuesday.In
fact,Unite America just released new research
<[link removed]> revealing that a
staggering 83% of U.S. House seats were decided months ago by just 8% of voters
during the primary election.This means that the results of fewer than one in
five races were in some doubt on Tuesday night — the rest were already
effectively decided before a single vote was counted this November. And it’s
this problem that’s disenfranchising voters, fueling political division, and
distorting representation.



While there is still much to be determined this election, we already have some
wins for reform on the board. Here are three things to take away from the 2022
election:





The #Primary Problem — A Thread 🧵
<[link removed]>


We’ve been hammering home the gravity of The Primary Problem
<[link removed]> all primary season long, but this
week’s results gave us a unique opportunity to put it into a greater
perspective. We’ve released new research highlighting that the Primary Problem
has gotten worse this year. How much worse though, and what does this mean in
relation to the state of our democracy?Check out our thread on Twitter
<[link removed]> highlighting the
jaw dropping details and key facts you should know about the Primary Problem in
2022.



Here are four key tweets to share:



1. The 2022 elections were severely lacking in competition and choice
<[link removed]>. Of the 83% (359
seats) of U.S. House seats decided in the 2022 primary, nearly 1/3rd (129
seats) were uncontested, with only one candidate on the ballot in the favored
party’s primary for voters to choose from.


2. This is a <[link removed]>
cross-partisan issue
<[link removed]> affecting both
Democrats & Republicans
<[link removed]>. In 2022, 165
blue & 194 red seats were decided in primary elections, denying voters on both
sides of the aisle any real choice on election day.

<[link removed]>

3. There were 21 states with NO competition in the favored party’s primary
<[link removed]>, effectively
limiting the choice of 61.5 million voters from a say in who represents them.



4. Only 16.5% of eligible voters cast a ballot in primary elections
<[link removed]>. Since 2010, less
than one in five voters have voted in a midterm primary election.





<[link removed]>

<[link removed]>




The midterm's untold truth
<[link removed]>


The Primary Problem is THE primary problem with our politics today. So, why is
it not plastered across national headlines (yet)? Unite America's Executive
Director, Nick Troiano,talked with Axios’ Media Trends reporter, Sara Fischer,
about the media's coverage of our latest findings
<[link removed]>
. The article notes that while research on The Primary Problem shows that there
are fewer elections that matter in November thanever before — which should
inherently make it a wildly covered narrative — the reason that it often isn’t
the top headline is due to “the challenge, of course… to make sure the media
isn't inadvertently dissuading voters, but rather, reminding them of the
importance of the primary process, to encourage them to participate.”



Check out Axios’ coverage of the 2022 Primary Problem
<[link removed]>
and Nick’s recent op-ed
<[link removed]> in the Fulcrum
about the solutions that exist to address the Primary Problem.


 


<[link removed]>

<[link removed]>
 




As The Supremes sing, “You can’t hurry love” — nor can you hurry election
results
<[link removed]>


Two days have passed since the midterm election, yet much is still to be
determined. It will bea few days
<[link removed]> until we
learn the final results of some races and the official outcomes of key election
reform ballot initiatives — or in some cases, like in Alaska (a statutory
provision requires 15 days for all ballots to be counted), it will be a few
weeks until we get the final results.



So, while we’re still in a holding pattern waiting for final results to be
tabulated, you can learn about what Alaska’s new election system — a top-four
nonpartisan primary and ranked choice voting general election — has already
taught us this election by reading our recent blog “What We Know So Far About
Alaska’s Innovative Election System
<[link removed]>
.”
 


<[link removed]>

<[link removed]>
 



Lastly, while we still have a ways to go in our pursuit of better
representation and a functional government, we already know that this election
has been a HUGE step toward reaching these goals. Thank you to everyone who
participated in this election and for being a part of this growing movement.



Regards,



Alana
__
Alana Persson
Unite America

DONATE <[link removed]>





Want to stop receiving our weekly Three Things Thursday emails? Unsubscribe
<[link removed]>
from Three Things Thursday, orUnsubscribe
<[link removed]>
from all Unite America communications.

Unite America | 1580 Lincoln St Suite #520 Denver, CO 80203
Paid for by Unite America PAC INC.
Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.
www.uniteamerica.org <[link removed]>