A group of lawmakers recently introduced legislation to advance a voting system that aims to end, or at least ameliorate, partisanship in U.S. politics. The Voter Choice Act (S. 2939), introduced by Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Angus King (I-Maine) and Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), would provide $40 million to help states and local governments to cover the costs of adopting a ranked-choice voting (RCV) model, also known as “instant-runoff voting.” Traditionally, most U.S.-based elections have followed the plurality system where candidates who receive the most votes win. Under this system, however, a candidate could receive as few as 34%…

In March 2021, the House voted to extend a deadline for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), which would formally ban discrimination on the basis of sex and has lingered in a state of limbo for decades. The joint resolution (H.J. Res. 17) passed the House in a 222-204 vote that fell largely along party lines. Four Republicans joined all Democrats in favor of the resolution, which was introduced by Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) and Rep. Tom Reed (R-N.Y.). The House passed a similar resolution in 2020, but the Senate, controlled by Republicans at the time, did not bring it…