The Capital Student Mayoral Debate and City Council Forum slated for today is not promoting a democratic system. None of the candidates from the Working Families Party were invited to participate. Certainly, there are time constraints that must be dealt with, but if this is the case for exclusion, then I would suggest that planners not invite incumbents. Those already in office have a voting record that citizens can examine. After several years of employment, that record is what we should look at, not their promises.
Then, today’s Courant reports that I. Charles Mathews is asking for marshals to be present at the polls next week after some sketchy situations were reported during the primary vote.
For a democracy to work, there needs to be practices that support democracy. If that means ensuring the poll volunteers are being trained correctly, so be it. If that means extending forums to be four hours long, so be it. Our electoral system is something so half-assed, that it’s no wonder more people don’t bother.