A Proclamation of the DC
Statehood Green Party
"Democratize the Electoral College"
February 2nd, 2012
THE
DC STATEHOOD GREEN PARTY MAP
PROCLAMATION IS TO REDRESS NATIONAL STATE INITIATIVES TO
INSTITUTIONALIZE "MINORITY VOTE DILUTION" WHETHER RACIAL, ECONOMIC,
POLITICAL, OR THIRD PARTY AFFILIATIONS BY THE ENACTMENT OF VOTER ID
LAWS AND "WINNER-TAKE-ALL" POLITICS. "
Whereas, One century and two
score years ago in the aftermath of America's civil war, the
Forty_Second congress passed , An Act
for the Apportionment of Representatives to Congress among the several
states according to the ninth Census (1870 Census). Section 6 of
the Apportionment Act of February 2, 1872, provided a mandate that the
number of representatives apportioned to any state to be proportionally
reduced, if the right to vote is denied or abridged._(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_College_(United_States)#Fourteenth_Amendment)
Whereas, Rep. John
Conyers (D-MI), (Dec. 8th, 2004), in Congressional Hearings on Ohio
Voting declared "This is the most
amazing proposition that has ever been brought forward by a non-lawyer
, and if it is accurate, it could change the whole outcome of the
voting process in the United States."
Whereas, District
Court Judge Henry H Kennedy Jr.( Jan. 4, 2011) in the matter of Gordon et al v. Clerk, US House of
Representatives declared "Mr.
Gordon raises some weighty issues having to do with the consequences or
results of an electoral system where a minority, a minority number of
votes are not recognized, that is when there is a winner-take-all
system." _ (http://www.electors.us).
Whereas, the
Supreme Court ruled in Fortson v.
Dorsey (1965) that at-large (Winner-take-all) voting
always operates to “minimize or cancel out the voting strength of
racial or political elements of the voting population”. At-large voting
denies voters an equally effective vote and clearly operates to
suppress the representation of minority groups, whether racial,
economic, political, or otherwise.
Therefore, the
DCSGP declares that a primary cause for the political unresponsiveness
of our Government to the welfare of the people at large is because of
our at large system of "Winner-take-all" Politics. Accordingly the
DCSGP calls for this declaration to be made a signal priority by the
national Green Party and Green Presidential candidates in media
communications and in campaign materials for release to the public.
Therefore, the
DCSGP calls for the National GP in advocacy for green party progressive
initiatives to place emphasis on the declaration that "winner-take-all"
Politics is harmful to the public welfare and unconstitutional. The
DCSGP declares that the Fourteenth Amendment mandates
proportional allocation of presidential electoral votes, or enforcement
of the second section of the Fourteenth Amendment mandate for a
reduction in the congressional delegations of states with voter id laws
that deny or abridge the citizen's "right to vote" resulting in
"minority vote dilution."
Therefore, the
DCSGP calls for the National GP to call upon progressive lawyers
and Organizations to join with the Green Party's Malapportionment
Penalty (MAP) initiative to "Democratize the Electoral College"
by enforcement of "the right to vote" Reconstruction amendment (Amend. XIV§2 ) that mandates a
state's proportional allocation of presidential electors based on the
popular vote split or suffer a "Reduction of Representation" in the
electoral college / members to congress (2USC§6) .
Therefore, the
DCSGP calls for the National GP to host at its National Convention in
2012 a keynote Civil War sesquicentennial commemorative address "The
USCT Legacy of National Redemption and Democracy ( How Black Civil War Veterans Reconstructed
the Union and Established Democracy in America ) " by Asa
Gordon of the African American Civil War Memorial and Chair of the
DCSGP Electoral College Task Force.
Resolved, the DCSGP
calls for the National Green Party to issue a complementary
proclamation to promote the GP_ MAP initiative to "Democratize
the Electoral College" and moves GP presidential candidates to:
(1) in interviews to include a reference to the Green initiative
to "Democratize the Electoral College", (2) include a reference
to the MAP initiative in their press releases and information packets,
and (3) include a reference and link at their web sites, as the Green
party candidate response to states election laws and winner-take-all
politics that effect "minority vote dilution" of minority groups,
whether racial, economic, political, or by party affiliation.
Winner-Take-All
Systems
“Winner-take-all” is a term used to describe
single member district and at large election systems that award seats
to the highest vote getters without ensuring fair representation for
minority groups. In the United States, these are typically
single-member district schemes or at-large, block-voting systems. Under
winner-take-all rules, a slim majority of voters can control 100% of
seats, leaving everyone else effectively without representation.
Winner-take-all systems are an anachronism in the modern world, as
nearly every emerging democracy has rejected their use. They were
introduced to America by the British during the colonial era, and are
virtually unknown in other developed countries. Their failings lie at
the root of many of our current political problems.
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