Intelligence Squared debate: Is the two-party system good for democracy?
Is the two-party system good for democracy? Does relying on two hugely powerful political bodies drive division and push voters to the extremes? Or does the two-party system moderate the electorate and make the nation governable?
This Intelligence Squared debate is moderated by John Donvan.
Motion
Two cheers for two parties.
Keynote speaker: Joanne B. Freeman, professor of history and American studies, Yale University.
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For the motion
Yascha Mounk, author, “The People vs. Democracy.” Lecturer, Harvard University, and senior fellow at New America: “When you look at systems of proportional representation around the world, you find that — unfortunately — they don't work any better than our two-party system works.”
Norman Ornstein, resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute: “We want to see major voting reform that will eliminate voter suppression and make it easier to vote. … But we believe they have to be made within the structure of an existing system that's built around having two major parties.”
Against the motion
Lee Drutman, author, “Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop”: “We are in this hyper partisan doom loop in which both parties fear what would happen if the other party gets into power because the two parties represent very different visions of America.”
Katherine Gehl, entrepreneur & political reformer: “In any other industry this large, with this much customer dissatisfaction and only two players, some entrepreneur would see it as a phenomenal business opportunity and create a new competitor to respond to what the customers wanted.”