Should the House move to a proportional representation (PR) system of election?

[Lisa's voting Biden]

I'm currently writing a research/argumentative piece on this subject and would just like to see what the forum thinks.

If you are unfamiliar with some of these terms, FairVote has an excellent article detailing each:
https://www.fairvote.org/how_proportional_representation_elections_work

[brucejoel99]

If we managed to overcome the inertia, vested interests, & corruption holding back reform here in the U.S., then yes, we should switch to a massively better system. I vote MMP so that people can keep their local representatives.

[AGA]

I think that MM PR would help get some third parties in Congress.

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

No, but states shouldn't draw districts and there should be some sort of runoff/ranked-choice mechanism. I've often thought it would be nice to apportion senate seats by population and have them be statewide PR, though. Not that any of this is realistic.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Open-list PR in small constituencies (average magnitude of 5 seats, with a total number of seats increased to 1000) would be ideal for a country that's diverse both geographically and non-geographically like the US, yeah.

[The Mikado]

I've already expressed my preference for top-two runoffs in seats where no one hits 50%. It works well for France and it's totally compatible with the current American style because it happens in parts of the US and people can intuitively understand it.

A combination of that with increasing the size of the House as Antonio mentioned would really improve the House.

[Del Tachi]

No, because having single-member FTP districts preserves some inherent geographic balance in the House.

[I’m not Stu]

Don Beyer sponsored a bill to switch to single transferable vote PR. Also, California, Washington, and Louisiana do not use plurality voting.

[Lechasseur]

My feeling is PR would only make sense if the electoral college is abolished, and if the Senate stops being FPTP

[Sirius_]

I would prefer a proportional by state system, with lists determined in state party primaries + the option for independents to appear on the ballot and be elected if they reach threshold.

[Blue3]

No... but the current system is NOT fine. Other changes are needed.

[thumb21]

I think the idea of local areas being represented in congress has a lot of value, but its really hard to look at some of these ridiculous gerrymandered districts and think that these districts were actually drawn with local representation in mind. I certainly don't think a district that includes a portion of one city, a portion of another and a slither of rural communities in between constitutes a coherent local community that would send a representative to congress with a clear idea of the needs of their district.

I prefer 3-5 member districts and a huge increase in the number of representatives to atleast 1000, elected using ranked choice voting. It allows representation for political minorities in certain areas, a more representative electoral system and keeps a local link.

[Antonio the Sixth]

I think the idea of local areas being represented in congress has a lot of value, but its really hard to look at some of these ridiculous gerrymandered districts and think that these districts were actually drawn with local representation in mind. I certainly don't think a district that includes a portion of one city, a portion of another and a slither of rural communities in between constitutes a coherent local community that would send a representative to congress with a clear idea of the needs of their district.

I prefer 3-5 member districts and a huge increase in the number of representatives to atleast 1000, elected using ranked choice voting. It allows representation for political minorities in certain areas, a more representative electoral system and keeps a local link.

This exactly.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

My feeling is PR would only make sense if the electoral college is abolished, and if the Senate stops being FPTP

Fine by me!

[Esteemed Jimmy]

No, because having single-member FTP districts preserves some inherent geographic balance in the House.

[S019]

Only if we went to ranked choice voting for each individual CD, otherwise no.

[Damocles]

Yes. Consolidate all the electoral districts into single, statewide districts, and award seats to parties based on proportional representation, on a closed list.

Create a single federal standard for casting, counting, tabulating, and certifying ballots.

Create a single federal standard for party registration and candidate nomination.

[Please delete this account. :)]

I'd say move states with only one district to statewide ranked-choice voting, and move all others to a statewide mixed-member proportional system.

If the house was uncapped, then I'd support moving all states to a single-district-per-state nonpartisan mixed-member proportional system.