E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport on New Book "100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting"

Join us on Tuesday, April 19, at 5:30 p.m. for a conversation with columnist for the Washington Post, E.J. Dionne (joining us virtually) and former Connecticut Secretary of State Miles Rapoport about their new book 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting, and hear their case for universal [civic] voting, and how it might be implemented. Is it time for the United States to take a major leap forward and recognize voting as both a fundamental civil right and a solemn civic duty?

Today’s headlines are filled with arguments over restrictions on the right to vote and attempts to expand it. But what if we leapt over the current argument, and made a commitment to a ‘100% Democracy’, an election process where every citizen has the right to vote and full opportunities to do so—but also the duty to vote, a requirement to participate in our national choices?

In 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting, co-authors E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport argue for just that, and it’s not as far out as it sounds at first hearing. Twenty-six countries around the world require participation in elections including Australia, which has required citizens to cast a ballot since 1924 and had over 90% voter turnout in their last major election. The U.S. on the other hand lags behind other democracies, with only 66.8% of eligible voters participating in the record-turnout election of 2020. If Americans are required to pay taxes and serve on juries, why not ask—or require—every American to vote?

This conversation will be moderated by Dr. Bilal Sekou, Associate Professor of Political Science in Hillyer College, and will be offered in a hybrid format, providing the option to attend in-person or virtually.

Join us in person in Wilde Auditorium or virtually on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83957414548). 

About the Authors:

 

E.J. Dionne is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post, university professor at Georgetown University, and visiting professor at Harvard University. He is the author of Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country. 

 

 

 

Miles Rapoport is the Senior Practice Fellow in American Democracy at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School. He formerly served in the Connecticut state legislature and as Connecticut’s secretary of the state. He also served as president of Demos and of Common Cause.

 

This program is sponsored by the Office of Diversity and Community Engagement, Hillyer College, University Interdisciplinary Studies (UIS), and the Department of Politics, Economics, and International Studies.

Questions? Contact Christine Grant, Executive Director of Diversity, Equity, and Community Engagement (cgrant@hartford.edu; 860-768-4220), Lisa Coté, Assistant Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (licote@hartford.edu; 860-768-4932) and/or Bilal Sekou, Hillyer College (sekou@hartford.edu; 860-768-4231).