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96 N.Y.U. L. Rev. 985 (2021)
Elections, Political Parties, and Multiracial, Multiethnic Democracy: how the United States Gets It Wrong

handle is hein.journals/nylr96 and id is 1001 raw text is: ELECTIONS, POLITICAL PARTIES, AND MULTIRACIAL, MULTIETHNIC DEMOCRACY: HOW THE UNITED STATES GETS IT WRONG LEE DRUTMAN* How can self-governance work in a diverse society? Is it possible to have a suc- cessful multiracial, multiethnic democracy in which all groups are represented fairly? What kinds of electoral and governing institutions work best in a pluralistic society? In the United States today, these are not just theoretical concerns but fun- damental inquiries at the core of an urgent question with an uncertain answer: How does American democracy survive? This Article looks for an answer by placing the United States in a broader context of multiracial, multiethnic democracies around the world. The basic argument is straightforward: The majoritarian politics of single-winner electoral districts and the two-party system it produces is bad for both minority representation and, by extension, for democracy itself. A more inclusive and stable democracy requires a proportional system of voting and more than two parties. This Article thus pro- ceeds in three parts. Part I takes a broader look at the theory of multiracial, mul- tiethnic democracy, with a particular focus on the role of parties and elections in sustaining or undermining multiracial, multiethnic democracy. Part II looks more closely at minority representation in the United States through the lens of the American party and electoral system and its deep inadequacies in supporting multi- racial, multiethnic democracy. Part III argues that proportional representation is the logical solution for the United States if it wants to have a chance at being a stable multiracial, multiethnic democracy. I. THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF MULTIRACIAL, MULTIETHNIC DEMOCRACY ............................... 986 A. The Essential Inevitability of Partisan Conflict ...... 989 B. Two Views of Democracy: Majoritarian vs. Proportional ........................................ 992 C. The Challenge of Successful Multiracial, Multiethnic Democracy and the Role of Elections and Parties ... 993 D. The Danger of Binary, Winner-Take-All Political Conflict in a Multiracial, Multiethnic Society ........ 997 E. How Electoral Rules Shape Political Coalitions ..... 1000 II. THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE ............................ 1001 A. The Two-Party System .............................. 1001 B. The Voting System .................................. 1005 * Copyright © 2021 by Lee Drutman, Senior Fellow, Political Reform Program, New America, Washington, DC. I am grateful to the New York University Law Review editors, who made this Article many times better. 985 Imannd with Pprmission of N Yu I aw Review

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