So apparently there's a new incarnation of the Whig Party

[Pedro de San Patricio]

Electoral and Government Reform
Electoral reform lies at the heart of Modern Whig methodology. We believe all citizens have an equal right to be represented in the democratic process and an equivalent duty to participate in it. We oppose all attempts to limit participation or distort representation. Our current political system unduly restricts political competition and undermines the average citizen's ability to properly exercise their political rights and duties.

Modern Whigs believe we must first start with the keystone to the electoral process: the ballot. Right now, elections are decided on the basis of plurality voting -- citizens can check off just a single name on their ballots, often leading them to bypass a candidate they truly support for a "least bad" alternative they believe can win and therefore avoid "wasting" their vote. We favor an approval voting system, where voters can check off the names of all the candidates they support.

After consultation with experts -- and careful thought and debate -- the Modern Whig Party believes the adoption of approval voting would open up the political process to new voices, reduce polarization and eliminate the “wasted vote syndrome” or “spoiler role” of alternative party candidates. Best of all, it wouldn't add any cost or complexity to the current balloting system.

For information on approval voting and a look at some sample ballots, please visit nationalrenewal.org.

But reforming the ballot is just the first step. A possibly bigger problem is the overwhelming influence of money in politics. Supreme Court decisions in two key cases -- Buckley v. Valeo in 1976 and Citizens United v. FEC in 2010 -- have raised serious constitutional barriers to any attempt at campaign finance reform. As the law now stands, candidates and elected officials can essentially raise unlimited amounts of money through their PACs and SuperPacs, and in the case of the latter have no obligation to disclose their donors.

The result has been a kind of financial arms race, and the amounts involved have become staggering. Worse yet, because of the titanic sums involved the influence of a small group of megadonors has come to dominate the electoral process -- and, in turn, the formation of policy.

The Modern Whig Party believes the approach advocated by RepresentUs holds a great deal of promise. Their draft of an American Anti-Corruption Act can unquestionably serve as a model for similar measures at the state and local level, and according to several constitutional experts would satisfy the legal requirements of both Buckley and Citizens United were it to be adopted as federal law.

But more than that, our absolute determination to "walk the talk" means no Modern Whig candidate will ever accept donations from corporations, unions or special interest groups. We also will always disclose the names of any and all donors whether it's required by law or not. And we will continue to push for the adoption of real campaign finance limits, disclosure and transparency laws, free and equal access to the airwaves and, ultimately, perhaps even public financing of campaigns.

We also advocate placing redistricting in the hands of non-partisan citizens committees to prevent state legislative majorities from gerrymandering congressional districts to artificially create safe seats. Other proposals, such as using simple geographic models to draw district boundaries, also deserve consideration. What matters is the result: a more fair, more representative election.

One final point. We do not believe lobbyists and the organizations they represent should enjoy special access to legislators and other serving government officials. We favor a ban on elected politicians working as lobbyists for five years after leaving office, and a similar ban on government employees doing business with their former colleagues for the same period of time.

Once some of these common sense reforms are adopted, other measures often proposed (such as term limits, expanding early voting, moving elections to a different day of the week) can be examined. But as of now, the system is deadlocked; we need to create a more fair and open ballot, break the stranglehold money has on the electoral process, and eliminate the revolving door between government service and private industry if we are to hope to make any progress.



Mod Edit to comply with copyright rules: don't post entire article - remainder of article at link The Modern Whig Party

That's their platform. They seem to be a tiny third party still, but apparently they've already won a couple of local elections. Thoughts?