Eric Herr: Return the center of political institutions to the people

To The Daily Sun,

“We the People, in order to form a more perfect union ... ” the opening line of the U.S. Constitution, stirs patriotism even now. But today, it would read “We the Political Parties, in order to preserve our political duopoly ...”

Political parties gerrymander election district boundaries to win elections. In New Hampshire, independents are 40% of registered voters. Yet, of the 424 current members of the New Hampshire Legislature, only two are independents. 

According to Citizens Count, a not-for-profit that monitors candidates and government institutions, in the House 95% of the time representatives voted with their party. In the Senate, 99% of the time. The controlling party sets the agenda, chooses committee chairpersons, and stacks the committees.

Our legislators are not bad people. They serve. Political parties are not inherently bad. The right of assembly is enshrined in the 1st Amendment. Still New Hampshire’s institutions distort political choices toward the parties’ interests, not the people’s.

It’s time to return politics and our political institutions to “We the People...” We need to adopt non-partisan single ballot primaries, level the playing field for independents, change legislative committee appointment rules to ensure the peoples’ interests are better served, and enable citizen-led ballot initiatives.

Early in our country’s history, it was clear to the Founding Fathers the nation would not prosper under the Articles of Confederation. They used the technology of the day: quill and ink, the 2nd Constitutional Convention, and the printing press to produce and win support for the U.S. Constitution.

Now, like then, it is clear that the system is broken. We must use today’s digital technology and citizen gatherings: listening sessions and assemblies, to engage and empower We the People. Let’s return the center of our political institutions and public policy to the people.

Eric Herr

Hill