Our Purpose

Common Sense.

It’s a phrase we often use simply to describe solutions to problems with which we encounter. For most of us, applying common sense is fairly easy for those things we are wrestling with at the moment. Common sense is elusive, however, for problems which we never give a minute of thought. For those matters we assume are “just the way they are,” common sense solutions simply never come into play.

The American colonists in the late 18th Century were living under an oppressive monarchial system an ocean away. They had no say in how their government worked. They had no ability to oppose arbitrary taxes on tea or the requirement of mandatory stamps. They had no control over British soldiers showing up and demanding to be fed and housed on was clearly not “private” property. They were oppressed, taxed, and ordered about with zero representation. It was wrong. Most colonists assumed that was “just the way things are.” It had been that way for their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. However, a few believed a change could be made and, from an initial handful of revolutionaries like Samuel Adams and others, a plan was formed.

Into this milieu stepped a young, fairly indistinct magazine editor in Pennsylvania, having arrived there from his native England in 1774. Observing all that was happening in the American Colonies, he authored his pamphlet, “Common Sense,” in 1776. In it, he made the case for American Independence, arguing that America need not be held captive by a corrupt kingdom from a different world. “Common Sense” was read by nearly every revolutionary patriot in America at the time and became central to encouraging and inspiring the American Revolution.

What has this to do with the current state of American politics – and, specifically, the current state of politics in our St. Louis region?

Ask yourself, am I generally happy with the choices I have to elect candidates in November General Elections, or do I, more often than not, find myself selecting the “lesser of two evils? If your answer is the latter, there is hope for the political leadership of the St. Louis region.

85%

of the November elections are decided before even a single vote is cast

The Problem

The “choices” presented in November are the folks who win low-turnout Primary Elections which increasingly tend to be the most extreme candidates from BOTH parties.

When most of us show up to vote in November, we have been exposed to millions of dollars of advertising, bombarded with political mail in our mailboxes and, more recently, spammed to death on our cell phones. This backdrop tends to create grouchy voters or, worse yet, citizens who don’t participate in elections at all any longer.

The Lesser of Two Evils Conundrum

What few realize is that nearly 85% of the November elections are decided before even a single vote is cast. Why? Because the vast majority of our political jurisdictions are so lopsided, either toward Democrats or toward Republicans, November election outcomes are easily predictable, even for the casual observer. Beyond that, the “choices” presented in November are the folks who win low-turnout Primary Elections which increasingly tend to be the most extreme candidates from BOTH parties. This is how we arrive at the “lesser of two evil” dilemma we face in November elections..

Often, the losing candidate in the primary would have made a better and more effective office holder, but they never get that chance because they failed to appeal to the extreme voters who dominate the primary electorate in both parties today. In addition, candidates in primary elections are often forced to take extreme ideological positions in order to appeal to the small slice of the electorate who will be nominating them. Is there any wonder why our modern-era politics have become so stridently polarized? This is not a Democrat nor a Republican problem. Rather, it is a systemic problem exacerbated by decreasing turnout in primaries which has been largely caused, by more and more voters becoming “turned off” to the state of American politics and simply walking away.

How can we expect to produce “Common Sense” office holders when thousands and thousands of “Common Sense” voters fail to participate in primary elections?

6.25%

of the electorate is selecting our US Senators, Members of Congress, and County Executive officials

The St. Louis region is Exhibit A of this trend. Take for example the City of St. Louis. The last Republican Mayor, Aloys P. Kaufmann, left office in April of 1949. In St. Louis County, the last Republican County Executive left office in January, 1991. In St. Charles County, there has never been a Democrat County Executive. Can any of us expect competitive General Elections when the minority party knows they have virtually no chance to win? On rare occasions, minority parties have fielded credible and well-funded candidates. But, for at least the past 35 years, their batting average is .000. How can we expect to produce “Common Sense” office holders when thousands and thousands of “Common Sense” voters fail to participate in primary elections?

Finally, we have witnessed in recent years that the primaries for the majority parties in their respective jurisdictions (Democrats in St. Louis City and County and Republicans in St. Charles County) have seen an explosion in the number of candidates filing for various offices. This means that the “winning” candidate in a 4- or 5-way race may “win” with 25-30% of the vote from 25-40% of the electorate who show up. Doing the math, as little as 6.25% of the electorate is selecting our US Senators, Members of Congress, and County Executive officials. This is a staggering reality. But it IS reality. And, when November elections no longer matter (which is most of the time), this is how we are now governed.

The Solution

Increase voter participation in primary elections

We are certainly not the first to identify this problem currently plaguing American democracy. Over the past two decades many have offered a number of solutions based upon changing the basic “Party Primary – General Election” construct described above. Some of those reforms have included:

“Jungle Primaries” in which candidates from all parties appear on the Primary Election ballot and the top-two finishers face each other in the General Election. (This is somewhat like what the City of St. Louis has recently been approved).
“Open Primaries” which require no voter to register by party but still allow them to vote in either party’s primary.
“Run-off Primaries” occur in handful of states which require the winner of the primary to receive a 50%-plus 1” result in order to be declared the party’s nominee. If no candidate achieves a majority in the primary to select a nominee, a run-off election is held between the top-two vote-getters.
“Ranked Choice Voting” allows voters to opt for more than one candidate and rank their choices. If no candidate receives “50%-plus 1” then voters’ second choices are added to the results and the votes of the top two finishers are retabulated until one candidate has a majority of the vote. This is a very complicated system.

While several of these reforms could make a difference, they are either illegal under Missouri’s statutes and Constitution, or they are unrealistic to enact. Remember, the people who set the election laws are the very people who benefit from our current, broken electoral processes.

What, then, shall we do?

The “Common Sense” answer is fairly straight forward. We need more citizens who recognize this fundamental problem of modern politics in the St. Louis region and we need more of them – many more of them – to cast ballots in party primaries. Thomas Paine would encourage us not to “allow the few to affect the lives of the many”.

What would happen if turnout in primary elections increased somewhat or dramatically?

To name just a few:

Extreme candidates who express views held by a sliver of the community would have a much more difficult time winning.
Winning candidates will tend to reflect the values and positions of a much more representative selection of the mainstream electorate. By “mainstream” we do not mean squishy moderates, but rather candidates whose views are in the mainstream opinion of the community.
Candidates would no longer feel the need to cater to the ideological fringe in order to prevail in primaries. Republican candidates can feel free to run right-of-center, conservative campaigns and Democrats can feel free to run left-of-center liberal campaigns.
In the few political jurisdictions where both parties have a shot at winning in November, the choices for the voter will more often than not include thoughtful candidates who still differ greatly on the solutions which will work best in their communities.

Common Sense STL is an educational organization whose mission is to “increase voter participation in elections through education and understanding.” We believe that, when frustrated voters understand they are truly empowered to change the political dynamics in the St. Louis region, there is a much stronger likelihood that our leaders will be competent, thoughtful, effective, and perhaps even visionary. Join our cause. Government can be messy and it can be frustrating. It can also be better. That is our goal.

When Thomas Paine made the case for American independence, he had to persuade people that change could actually happen. He had to convince them that there was a common-sense solution to their problem. And, he had to encourage them to take action. In Paine’s time, that solution meant taking up arms and defeating Cornwallis’s army.

Common Sense STL is an endeavor to persuade the people of the Greater St. Louis region that change CAN occur here. There does, in fact, exist a common-sense solution to our current problems. We just need to take action. We just need more of us to vote.

What Kind of Voter Are You?

Paid for by Common Sense STL, PO Box 7171, Chesterfield MO, 63006 and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.