Politicians in America are selected through democratic elections, but how do these elections work? What are the consequences of our electoral system, and do other countries do it better? This week WonkCast host William Somes is joined by Verena Wingerter, an International Affairs and Cybersecurity student on exchange from the Hertie School in Berlin, Germany. Following a brief introduction, William and Verena discuss the features of the American and German electoral systems for selecting federal legislators, as well as the benefits and flaws of both. William then concludes with a discussion of alternative electoral systems that have been employed in the United States in recent years, including ranked-choice and single transferable vote systems.

References:

Dubner, S. J., & Levitt, S. D. (2015). Think like a freak. HarperCollins USA.

Katz, R. S. (2007). Political Institutions in the United States. Oxford University Press.

Rule, W., & Zimmerman, J. F. (1992). United States electoral systems: Their impact on women and
minorities. Greenwood Press.

Episode Transcript

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The views expressed herein are those of the host and do not necessarily reflect the views of Policy Perspectives or the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration.