Maine Democratic U.S. Representative Jared Golden wants to overhaul the House and its electoral process.
Golden is calling for a task force to look into changes, including expanding the size of the House (currently 435 member) and adopting multi-member districts that would be divvied up by the proportion of votes cast.
The task force would also look into adopting alternative methods of voting, including ranked choice voting (currently being used in Maine), and holding open and nonpartisan primaries.
“Americans on both sides are fed up with a political system that incentivizes division,” Golden said. “Fixing our laws to make government more representative doesn’t just sound great on paper: States like Maine have already proven it works. Getting both Democrats and Republicans to start talking about solutions is the first step to a better future.”
Golden co-chairs the House Blue Dog Coalition and is proposing the bill to form the task with his co-chair from Washington state, Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez.
“Regardless of party or ideology, more and more Americans feel that our democracy isn’t working for them. Voters feel unrepresented and are losing faith in a government that they view as unreflective of their communities and values. As Members of Congress, we need to take a step back, reexamine how we got here, and work toward what we can do to fix it,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “This bipartisan select committee will look at the role our electoral system plays in exacerbating the hyper-partisanship, cynicism, and obstruction that has taken over today’s politics. It’s past time for Congress to set aside the conflict and chaos of clickbait politics and get back to work governing on behalf of the American people.”
Golden narrowly won reelection this month to Maines 2nd Congressional District. Gluesenkamp Perez was a congressional district in 2022, that had been reliably Republican in recent times. She also won reelection this month. Both Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez are known for splitting from the Democratic Party on numerous issues.
