Action Plan

"The Best Defense is a Good Offense"

Getting either one of two elegantly simple, yet incredibly powerful, reforms enacted will put the form of a perfect democracy in place.

There is a great deal of discussion these days about democracy being under assault in America (and around the world). It is. It is also true that democracy is always under assault – anytime and anywhere it manages to take root and blossom. Every election is, to some extent, a referendum on democracy. And while we absolutely must do what we can to fight off attacks on democracy, for democracy to win, we need to do more than fight off the attacks, we must score victories for democracy. An adage common to sports and warfare apples here – when it comes to defending democracy, the best defense is a good offense.

Putting the form of a perfect democracy in place in America (or in any state in the United States) involves enacting either (or both) of two foundational and transformative reforms.

John Locke shared a vision for what that would look like in a direct democracy. He advocated strongly and effectively for majority rule, an equal vote or equal representation for every citizen, and the supremacy of the legislative power, within a direct democracy as the elements that put “the form of a perfect democracy” in place. We can make Locke’s vision a reality by enacting Perfect Democracy Amendments.

John Adams shared a vision of the ideal representative assembly. We can make Adams' vision a reality (and transform Congress and state legislatures into truly democratic institutions) by implementing systems of Proxies for Citizens.

Priorities

The campaign to enact these reforms will be waged at the state level:

Article V of the U. S. Constitution provides two methods for proposing amendments: by a two-thirds vote in each house of Congress or through a convention called by two-thirds of the state legislatures. Regardless of which method is utilized, proposed amendments must be ratified by three-fourths of the states. Along with the fact that members of Congress are elected by voters at the state level, this means that enacting pro-democracy amendments will require a majority of the citizens in a super-majority of states to unite in support of democracy. When we achieve that level of support, our movement will be too big to fail.

The details of what needs to be done and the best strategy for getting these reforms enacted will vary from state to state and at the federal level.

Two things will be the same in every state. The key to our success is politically active citizens making their support for candidates for public offices contingent upon a candidate’s support for Perfect Democracy Amendments and/or Proxies for Citizens. And once a majority of the citizens in a state learn to recognize Champions of Democracy and elect them to a majority of the seats in their state legislature, any and all legislation that has the support of a majority of the people will be passed into law.

That is what democracy looks like.

In states with provisions for amending the state constitution through the initiative:

There are eighteen states where the state constitution can already be amended through the initiative process. Those states are Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, and South Dakota.

Our primary focus in those states should be on using the initiative process to enact both a Perfect Democracy Amendment (that simply provides for initiative petitions to be signed electronically through Online Accounts for Politically Active Citizens) and a Proxies for Citizens Amendment.

Getting either one, or both, of those proposed amendments on the ballot and approved by voters will make it easier to get all the other reforms needed to make a state a perfect democracy enacted. It will also make it possible to get all the other legislation supported by a majority of the people enacted.

The details of getting proposals on the ballot vary from state to state but require collecting a lot of signatures by a deadline in every state. We need to get petitions drafted and filed as soon as possible. We need to begin organizing campaigns to gather signatures in those states.

In other states:

There are eight states that have various, less powerful, combinations of referendums and the initiative already in place. Two states (Maryland and New Mexico) only have provisions for referendums. Six states (Alaska, Idaho, Maine, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming) have the initiative for statutes and referendums, but no initiative for constitutional amendments.

Our primary focus in states where the state constitution cannot be amended through the initiative should be getting systems of Proxies for Citizens implemented - as a constitutional amendment, as legislation, or simply as a rule adopted by either chamber in a state legislature.

It should be easier to find support for Proxies for Citizens among the incumbents in state legislatures because, unlike Perfect Democracy Amendments (which shift power from politicians to the people), proxies shift power to the people indirectly, through the members of a representative assembly, and shift power within a representative assembly to the members who do the best job of identifying the concerns of the people of each state and draft and introduce (or cosponsor) legislation addressing those concerns.

At the Federal Level:

It will not be possible to implement a system of Proxies for Citizens in the U. S. Senate without a constitutional amendment because the Constitution stipulates that each senator has “one vote” and no state can be denied “equal suffrage” without its consent.

It will also be necessary to amend the U. S. Constitution to provide for referendums and the initiative at the federal level.

Our primary focus and top priority at the federal level, therefore, must be to amend Article V of the Constitution of the United States to include provisions for referendums and the initiative. That will put the form of a perfect democracy in place nationally and make it considerably easier to enact additional pro-democracy reforms and will also make it possible to get all the other legislation supported by a majority of the people enacted.

As we gain the support of a majority of the people in each state for pro-democracy reforms, more and more states will elect Champions of Democracy to both houses of Congress. Once Champions of Democracy have been elected to Congress and/or state legislatures in two-thirds of the states, we will be able to amend Article V of the U. S. Constitution to provide for referendums and the initiative.

The Power of One:

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” And it only takes a single Champion of Democracy to get introduce the legislation needed to put the form of a perfect democracy in place.

In the eighteen states that already provide for amending a state constitution through the initiative, a single citizen can file an initiative petition to start the process of getting proposals for Perfect Democracy Amendments, or Proxies for Citizens, or both, on the ballot.

It only takes a single Champion of Democracy among the members of a legislative chamber to introduce legislation implementing a system of Proxies for Citizens (or proposing a Perfect Democracy Amendment).

Getting pro-democracy reforms drafted and introduced will enable voters to identify Champions of Democracy among the members of Congress and state legislatures. That, in turn, will help us identify the districts where we need to recruit Champions of Democracy to run against incumbents who do not support pro-democracy reforms.

Which Side Are You On?

Politics is a Team Sport and a Numbers Game

A TEAM SPORT:

The Democratic Party and the Republican Party have long been considered the primary “teams” in our electoral and political systems. Democracy is not a partisan issue. (At least not in the normal sense of the term.)

Although the assault on democracy is being led by Republicans in Congress and state governments and the few pro-democracy reforms that have been proposed have generally been introduced by Democrats, it is important to understand that there are a great many Republican voters and some Republicans holding public office who believe in democracy. There are some Democrats who don’t.

The “sides” in a referendum on democracy, properly defined and understood, are Champions of Democracy, on one side, and the false friends and true enemies of democracy on the other side.

A NUMBERS GAME:

Our “winner-take-all” political system, with single member districts and plurality winners, focuses most of our attention on individual candidates in head-to-head competition to win seats in legislatures or executive offices. Every candidate talks about issues of concern to voters in a manner that implies that, if they are elected, the legislation voters want enacted will be enacted. But politics in America is a team sport and a numbers game. It takes 218 votes in the House and 51 votes in the Senate to enact legislation. (As long as the Senate keeps the filibuster in place, 60 votes are necessary to pass legislation in most cases.) If the president vetoes a bill, it takes 290 votes in the House and 67 in the Senate to override the veto. It also takes 290 votes in the House and 67 in the Senate to propose an amendment to the Constitution, which must then be ratified by a majority vote in three-fourths of the states (38 states).

Although politics is a team sport and a numbers game, the game is won one seat or office at a time.

The next few elections are likely to be, in large part, referendums on democracy. We must succeed in making the Democracy Agenda a key part of those elections. And we must win the hearts and minds of politically active citizens who claim to believe in democracy but don't understand that majority rule is the essential element that makes a government a true democracy. We must focus our support on candidates who support the Democracy Agenda. When a majority of the politically active citizens in a super-majority of the congressional and legislative districts , that will go a long way toward making a broad and inclusive movement to make America a perfect democracy, too big to fail.

When we unite in support of the democratic ideals upon which our nation was founded, our pro-democracy movement will be "too big to fail".

Politically Active Citizens

Politically Active Citizens are the key to organizing the broad-based and inclusive movement that will be needed to overcome the opposition of the false friends and true enemies of democracy and enact the reforms needed to make America a perfect democracy. We are the link between pro-democracy candidates and voters.

Those of us who contribute time and/or money to candidates for office tend to have one or more issues or causes that we care about deeply. We work through candidates and organizations in support of the causes and issues we care about. And we are routinely and continually disappointed when the legislation we actively support fails to get enacted even though it has the support of a majority of voters.

We need to realize that we are not likely to see meaningful action on any of the many issues that have popular support until we fix our broken, corrupted, dysfunctional, and antidemocratic political system. Once we have made America a perfect democracy (or at least a true democracy), we will see meaningful action on ALL of the issues that concern us. We need to help candidates and voters understand that as well.

We need to make it clear that we will only support and work for candidates who support pro-democracy reforms. We need to identify and support CHAMPIONS OF DEMOCRACY who are on the ballot for every seat in Congress and all 50 state legislatures.

If enough of us withhold our support from incumbents who have not signed on to the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda, that legislation is more likely to be introduced. If enough of us simply refuse to support candidates who do not support democracy, candidates who do support democracy will emerge – and they will have a better chance of winning elections.

Pro-Democracy Incumbents

We need to convince PRO-DEMOCRACY INCUMBENTS to sponsor and cosponsor the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda. And we need to support members of Congress and state legislatures who sponsor pro-democracy legislation, or who sign on as cosponsors, regardless of their party affiliation.

Members of Congress and state legislatures do not ordinarily draft and submit (or co-sponsor) legislation that has no realistic chance of being enacted in a legislative session. We need to find at least one Champion of Democracy in each chamber of Congress and each chamber of every state legislature who will draft and introduce the legislation called for in the Democracy Agenda even if there is little chance of it passing immediately and then encourage other members to sign on as cosponsors. That will make it easy for us to identify the incumbents who are Champions of Democracy and give them our support.

Within our present political system, members of Congress and state legislatures are most likely to respond to requests from their own constituents - the people who can vote for (or against) them. It is, therefore, very important for as many citizens as possible to contact their own senators and representatives to encourage them to draft and introduce the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda.

Pro-Democracy Candidates

When an incumbent running for re-election does not support pro-democracy legislation, we need to do our best to recruit one or more candidates who do support the Democracy Agenda to run in major party primaries. It will be especially important to recruit a candidate for the major party that is dominant in districts that have been gerrymandered to strongly favor one of the two major parties.

We need to encourage every non-incumbent candidate for Congress and state legislatures to post statements of support for the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda on their campaign website and notify us when they have done so. We will be posting links to the appropriate pages on the websites of Champions of Democracy on our website. Our primary focus throughout the election will be on various ways to encourage voters and politically active citizens to visit our website before deciding what candidates to support with their time, money, and votes.

Pro-Democracy Voters

When a majority of the VOTERS in a majority of the congressional and legislative districts in a super-majority of states understand the essential elements that make a nation a true democracy, our movement will be "Too Big to Fail". When voters learn to recognize Champions of Democracy and vote for them, America will be a true democracy. When a majority of voters are well-educated, well-informed, and respect the rights of others, America will be a Perfect Democracy.

Action Plan: Step-by-Step

The process we need to follow varies a bit from state to state and at different levels of government.

Step One: Get legislation drafted and introduced

Members of Congress and state legislatures do not ordinarily draft and submit (or co-sponsor) legislation that has no realistic chance of being enacted in a legislative session. To do so risks losing the financial support of corporate interests and tax-averse billionaires, and consequently risk losing re-election.

We need to find at least one Champions of Democracy in each chamber of Congress and each chamber of every state legislature who will draft and introduce the legislation called for in the Democracy Agenda even if there is little chance of it passing in 2024. That will make it easy for us to identify the incumbents who are Champions of Democracy and give them our support.

At the state level our focus should be on the four foundational reforms (Proxies for Citizens, Perfect Democracy Amendments, and both forms of ranked choice voting (single winner and multiple-member districts).

Step Two: Recruit cosponsors

Once the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda has been introduced, we need to get members of Congress and state legislatures who believe in democracy to make their support the Democracy Agenda clear by signing on as cosponsors to the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda.

Step Three: Recruit Champions of Democracy to run for office

Our goal should be to have at least one candidate who supports the Democracy Agenda on the ballot in every state and district for congressional elections and election to state legislatures.

When an incumbent does not support the Democracy Agenda, we need to do our best to recruit one or more candidates who do support the Democracy Agenda to run in both major party primaries. It will be especially important to recruit a candidate for the major party that is dominant in districts that have been gerrymandered to strongly favor one of the two major parties.

Step Four: Conduct unofficial primaries (as needed)

Except in Maine and Alaska (where ranked choice voting is already in place), when there is more than one candidate in an election who supports the Democracy Agenda and other candidates who do not, we will need to conduct some sort of unofficial primary election to unite behind a single Champion of Democracy to minimize or neutralize the “spoiler effect”.

When an incumbent in Congress supports the Democracy Agenda, they deserve our support across party lines and regardless of their position on other issues. If a challenger has made a clear and firm pledge to support the Democracy Agenda, especially if that challenger is from the opposing major party, voters who are members of one or the other of the two major parties will understandably want to take advantage of that fact to vote for the candidate of their own party.

When a Congressional incumbent does not support the Democracy Agenda, we need to do our best to recruit candidates who do support the Democracy Agenda to run in both major party primaries. It will be especially important to recruit a candidate for the major party that is dominant n districts that have been gerrymandered to strongly favor one of the two major parties.

When the primaries are over, if both major party candidates in a state or district support Democracy Agenda, voters can cast their votes based on other issues. If only one major party candidate who supports democracy is on the ballot, we need to support that candidate even if we disagree with their position on other issues.

When only one major party candidate supports the Democracy Agenda, we need to avoid running or supporting any minor party or independent candidates (except in Maine or Alaska where ranked choice voting has eliminated concerns about the "spoiler effect"). If neither major party candidate supports democracy, if there is more than one minor party or independent candidate who support the Democracy Agenda, we need to identify the candidate with the best chance of winning and unite in support of that candidate.

Within our “winner-take-all” system, with plurality winners and single-member districts, if there is more than one pro-democracy candidate on the ballot in a given state or district, we need to provide some means of uniting in support of one pro-democracy candidate, especially if there is only one antidemocratic candidate on the ballot. In those cases, we must convene a pro-democracy caucus, convention, or unofficial primary election in order to avoid splitting the pro-democracy vote.

Step Five: Civic Education

A pro-democracy political revolution must be a grassroots movement. We must convince a majority of politically active citizens (those who volunteer their time and/or make financial contributions to political candidates, parties, and organizations) to limit their support to Champions of Democracy.

Politically active citizens who knock doors and make phone calls on behalf of candidates need to focus their messaging on building support for pro-democracy reforms (and candidates).

At the Federal Level

A Perfect Democracy Amendment must be our top priority.

George Mason, one of the delegates to the Federal Convention of 1787, pointed out to his fellow delegates that it should be possible to amend the Constitution “in an easy, regular, and Constitutional way” and that “It would be improper to require the consent of the National Legislature (Congress), because they may abuse their power.” Some of the most prominent of our nation's Founders agreed. But a majority of the delegates to the convention voted instead to put an anti-democratic amendment process in place, that is far from “easy”, with super-majority requirements included in both methods provided for in Article V for amending the Constitution.

There is no provision for referendums or the initiative in the Constitution of the United States.

A system of Proxies for Citizens in the U. S. House of Representatives could be implemented by a simple majority vote in the House of Representatives changing the rules of how the House conducts its business. It could be adopted more permanently (and more transparently) by simple legislation. It would not require a constitutional amendment.

Extending the use of proxies to the U. S. Senate would require a constitutional amendment because Article V of the Constitution of the United States includes a provision that "no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate".

There would be some benefit to implementing a system of Proxies for Citizens in the U. S. House of Representatives. It would instantly transform the House into the truly democratic institution it was intended to be. However, with the “check” on the will of the people provided by the Senate still in place, legislation desired by a majority of the people would likely still be blocked consistently.

Our top priority at the federal level, therefore, must be to add a provision for referendums and the initiative to Article V of the Constitution.

There are two methods of amending our Constitution provided for in Article V: Amendments can be proposed by two-thirds of the members of both the House and Senate or the legislatures of two-thirds of the states can call a convention for proposing amendments. Regardless of which method is used to propose amendments, proposed amendments must be ratified by three-fourths of the states. Congress may designate either state legislatures or conventions in each state as the “Mode of Ratification”.

There are no details provided in the Constitution, or in any legislation that has been enacted since the Constitution was ratified, regarding how delegates to a Convention would be chosen or how the business of the Convention would be conducted. Absent legislation to provide those details and ensure that delegates to a convention would be chosen democratically, calling a convention to propose amendments risks triggering a constitutional crisis and a convention that could conceivably make America less democratic, rather than more democratic.

Franklin Roosevelt said it very well...

Enacting the Democracy Agenda will make it easier for politically active citizens to exercise our power as "the ultimate rulers of our democracy".

To exercise our power as “the ultimate rulers of our democracy” we must unite in support of democracy and in support of Champions of Democracy. We must elect candidates who support the legislation that makes up the Democracy Agenda to a majority of the seats in every state legislature and in both houses of Congress. We must temporarily set aside our differences of opinion regarding the wedge issues that divide us (abortion, gun control, gay rights, immigration, taxes, and the proper role of government and make support for pro-democracy legislation our top priority in deciding which candidates to support.

To believe in democracy means to agree that major political decisions (what laws should be enacted, what rights should be secured and protected, and the form of the government) should be made by "the voters of this country"– not by politicians, or Supreme Court justices.

When we unite in support of the ideals upon which our nation was founded, we will find that we, the people, have the power to address the flaws in our political system and make America a perfect democracy.

One way or another, we need to conduct referendums on democracy in all fifty states. We need to make sure democracy wins!

There is a long list of critical problems that need to be addressed and issues that need to be resolved in America today. We argue angrily and endlessly about the same issues. We have become bitterly divided. There are solutions that have the support of a solid majority of Americans, but so far, those solutions have not been implemented because within our corrupted, dysfunctional, gridlocked political system, the will of the people does not matter.

Unless and until we make America a true democracy, very little, if any, of the legislation we want enacted will be enacted. Once we succeed in making America a true democracy, all the legislation that has the support of a majority of politically active citizens will be passed into law.

To make America a true democracy, we, the people, must unite – across party lines and despite ideological differences on the issues that divide us. Without abandoning our efforts on the issues we care about, we must make enacting the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda our top priority.

Our greatest blessing, as Americans, is that we can have a political revolution using ballots instead of bullets!

To exercise our power as “the ultimate rulers of our democracy” we must first unite in support of democracy and in support of Champions of Democracy. We must elect candidates who support the legislation that makes up the Democracy Agenda to a majority of the seats in both houses of Congress and every state legislature. We must temporarily set aside our differences of opinion regarding the wedge issues that divide us (abortion, gun control, gay rights, immigration, taxes, and the proper role of government and make support for pro-democracy legislation our top priority in deciding which candidates to support.

When we unite in support of the ideals upon which our nation was founded, we will find that we, the people, have the power to address the flaws in our political system and become more than a “full democracy”. We can make America a perfect democracy.

The election of 2024 is going to be a referendum on democracy. That is not a matter that is up for discussion or debate. It is simply the way things are and the way things are going to be. We need to make sure democracy wins!

PRIORITIZE U.S. SENATE RACES

Getting two-thirds of the members of the U. S. Senate to support the constitutional amendments called for in the Democracy Agenda will be our biggest challenge. The fact that senators serve significantly longer terms than representatives makes voting anti-democratic senators out of office in every election especially important. We need to make support for the Democracy Agenda the key consideration of as many voters as possible as they decide which candidates for the U. S. Senate to support.

SUPPORT CANDIDATES FOR STATE LEGISLATURES WHO SUPPORT THE DEMOCRACY AGENDA

Getting constitutional amendments ratified by three-fourths of the states will also be a major challenge. Introducing resolutions of support for the legislation included in the Democracy Agenda is the most obvious means of determining which members of state legislatures support genuine democracy and which members need to be replaced by a champion of democracy. Hopefully such resolution will be adopted by state legislatures, but simply introducing such resolutions will enable us to identify which incumbents support the Pure Democracy Amendment, even if the resolution is not adopted.

The prospect of making America a perfect democracy should excite and motivate us as much as it scares the rulers of America.

The rulers of America will spend a great deal of money seeking to keep democracy from breaking out. And they will use that money to spread a lot of misinformation and disinformation about the dangers of “mob rule” and the “tyranny of the majority”. Those of us who are excited by the prospect of democracy breaking out need to invest a lot of time (and, yes, some money) educating voters about the many true blessings of pure democracy.

The material on this website is adapted from a soon to be published book: Government by the People: A Citizen's Guide to Making America a Perfect Democracy by Winston Apple.

This website was created by, is maintained by, and paid for by Winston Apple,

Government by the People

Government by the People

Our Action Plan

"The Best Defense is a Good Offense"

Getting either one of two elegantly simple, yet incredibly powerful, reforms enacted will put the form of a perfect democracy in place.