voting

Why California Should Let Pandas Vote

Two Immigrants From China Have Taken Up Residence at the San Diego Zoo, and They Have Thoughts on Golden State Governance

Why California Should Let Pandas Vote | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Nǐ hǎo, jiāzhōu!

Hello, California!

We are the Golden State’s two giant pandas, the first to enter the United States in two decades. And while it’s only been a few months since we departed southwest China for the San Diego Zoo, we’ve already met the governor, celebrities, TV broadcasters who love puns (“Panda-monium”), and thousands of everyday people, some of whom pay $115 to enter the zoo in the early morning and walk around with us for an hour. We now feel so at home in California that we’re wondering how we might …

by Yun Chuan and Xin Bao |

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Young South Africans Are Sick of the Status Quo

This Election Season, No One Is Fighting for Our Future—Mandela’s Party Included

by Georgia Cloete |

This year we celebrate the milestone of 30 years as a democratic state and the seventh general election in which all South Africans regardless of race are allowed to vote.

Our …

Will Young Americans Finally Rock the Vote?

After Decades of Research, We Know How to Get New People to the Polls. We Just Don’t Always Do It

by Jane Eisner |

Twenty years ago, I published Taking Back the Vote: Getting American Youth Involved in Our Democracy. The book grew out of a personal passion: Once my oldest child was able …

Could This New Democratic Tool Make Californians Vote Smarter?

The Digital Deliberative Poll May Encourage the Public to Learn More About Their Ballots

by Joe Mathews |

Californians vote on many ballot measures, but we almost never participate in significant public debates and discussions about the measures’ contents and impacts.

This isn’t simply a result of apathy or …

Stop Trying to ‘Save’ Democracy

Or Waiting on a Politician To Do It for You. Instead, Practice It—At Work, School, and Little League

by Joe Mathews |

Please don’t save democracy.

If you’re a politician—stop promising to save it.

Please! Stop even trying.

Because you can’t. Democracy isn’t something you save. The sooner we stop talking about saving democracy, the …

A tight crowd of men and women, some sitting down, some standing. Political banners and pictures are seen above the people.

In Dhaka, the Roadblocks to Democracy Are Roadblocks

As the Election Looms in Bangladesh, Blockades Are More Than a Metaphor for the Obstacles Facing Voters

by SAYKOT KABIR SHAYOK |

It’s election season in Bangladesh—the roads are closed, vehicles are burning, and the threat of violence is close.

As I write these sentences, the country’s chief opposition party—the Bangladesh Nationalist Party …


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