Political Lessons from American Cities: Seattle

This special series, “Political Lessons from American Cities,” is presented courtesy of Temple University Press. In this episode, you'll hear from Jennifer A. Heerwig (Stony Brook University) and Brian J. McCabe (Georgetown University) about their book, Democracy Vouchers and the Promise of Fairer Elections in Seattle.

In 2017, Seattle inaugurated a new way for citizens to be involved in democracy: they introduced publicly financed vouchers for voters to donate to local candidates. The innovative plan is designed to level the playing field in campaign financing. Through the vouchers, residents allocate dollars to candidates of their choice in local elections, putting political money directly in the hands of voters. The intent is to increase political participation and ameliorate the long-standing representational inequalities of private donations.

Democracy Vouchers and the Promise of Fairer Elections in Seattle critically evaluates the success and impact of this program. Jennifer Heerwig and Brian J. McCabe emphasize how local elections now attract a much wider and more diverse field of both donors and candidates. They also consider external threats to the program, from litigation about the constitutionality of a voucher program to the rise of independent expenditures.

Offering important lessons on how other cities can adopt a similar program, this compelling case study also highlights the obstacles that will likely arise in its implementation.

Temple Press is publishing six titles in their series, “Political Lessons from American Cities,” which is edited by Richardson Dilworth, UAR Managing Editor and Professor of Politics at Drexel University.

Credits 

Many thanks to Gary Kramer and Sam Cohn at Temple University Press, the Lindy Institute for Urban Innovation at Drexel University, the managing editors at Urban Affairs Review, and our guests for sharing their time and insights with us. The show’s music is “Hundred Mile” by K2, courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions.