Requiring Majority Winners for Congressional Elections: Harnessing Federalism to Combat Extremism

Authors

Edward B. Foley, The Ohio State University

First Page

365

Abstract

Congress should enact a law requiring a candidate for a seat in Congress to receive a majority of votes in order to win the election. Congress should let states determine what particular procedure to use to determine whether a candidate wins a majority, as there are significantly different methods of identifying a majority winner. While this simple piece of legislation might seem inconsequential—many Americans assume, erroneously, that elections already require majority winners—it in fact would cause states to undertake a form of experimentation in the details of electoral system design that would have the effect of counteracting the threat that anti-democracy extremism currently poses in America.

Recommended Citation

Edward B. Foley, Requiring Majority Winners for Congressional Elections: Harnessing Federalism to Combat Extremism, 26 Lewis & Clark L. Rev. 365 (2022).
Available at: https://lawcommons.lclark.edu/lclr/vol26/iss2/4