Empowering Voters and Defending Democracy

How to Fix What’s Broken in Our Voting System — and the Solutions Already in Motion

(Based on my conversation with Amy Widestrom, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania)

American democracy runs on a simple promise: every eligible citizen gets a voice, and that voice matters. But as my guest Dr. Amy Widestrom, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania made clear, the system that’s meant to deliver on that promise is full of structural problems most voters never see.

Here’s the irony: We obsess over presidential elections every four years… meanwhile the elections that most directly affect our lives — for school boards, mayors, judges, and state legislators — often draw only 15–25% turnout. The result? A democracy shaped by a tiny percentage of the people it’s supposed to serve. This article breaks down the conversation with Amy through a Problem vs. Solution lens, focusing on what we can do to empower voters, strengthen fairness, and ensure every vote really counts.

Problem #1: Most Americans Only Vote Every Four Years

The “Presidential Election Illusion”

We’ve all heard it: “The president will fix everything.” As Amy explained, the president has limited influence on many issues people care about, including potholes, trash pickup, zoning, schooling, public safety, and even many everyday economic policies. Yet turnout numbers tell the story:

Presidential elections: 60%+ turnout
Local mayoral elections: ~25% turnout
Judicial elections: Even lower
Primary elections: Often under 20%

This means the people who make the closest, most immediate decisions affecting your life are being chosen by a very small number of voters.

→ Solution: Treat Voting Like a Muscle and Use It Often

Every election matters. Local elections especially matter. The League of Women Voters (LWV) focuses on increasing voter registration, providing trustworthy, nonpartisan information, raising awareness about the direct impact of local offices, and encouraging participation in every election, not just presidential ones.

The most important thing voters can do: Vote every time you’re given the chance.

Problem #2: Gerrymandering — Politicians Pick Their Voters

One of the biggest ways your vote can be diluted without you ever knowing

Gerrymandering is the manipulation of electoral boundaries to favor a political party or protect incumbent power. It often results in absurdly drawn districts, including one in Pennsylvania that literally looked like a dragon curling around neighborhoods. Here’s the cost:

Your neighbor might be in a different district despite living one block away.
Neighborhoods with shared interests are split apart.
One party may be “packed” into a district to weaken their influence statewide.
Citizens end up having different representatives despite being part of the same community.

In most states, the very politicians who benefit from gerrymandering are the ones who draw the maps.

→ Solution: Take Map-Drawing Out of Politicians’ Hands

Amy and the League advocate for Independent Citizens Redistricting Commissions. These exist in several states. They remove conflicts of interest and produce logical, community-aligned districts. In Pennsylvania, LWV’s Fair Districts PA campaign is pushing hard for this change. Politicians benefiting from the current system rarely want to voluntarily give up that power. This makes citizen pressure essential.

Problem #3: Complexity and Inconsistency Across Counties and States

Voting laws shouldn’t feel like a maze

The Constitution gives states the authority to run elections. Which means 50 states, 3000+ counties, 3000 different implementations. In Pennsylvania for example, 67 counties administer elections 67 different ways. That leads to:

Different rules for ballot “curing” (fixing mistakes)
Different treatment of mail-in ballots
Different notification systems for ballot errors
Different interpretations of what counts as a valid signature or date

Some counties notify voters if they made a mistake on their mail-in ballot; Others simply throw the ballot out. Amy calls this a fundamental fairness issue.

→ Solution: Standardize Processes — Especially for Mail-In Ballots

LWV advocates for:

Uniform statewide standards for counting mail ballots
Ending ballot rejection for meaningless technicalities (like writing the wrong date)
Allowing simple mistakes to be corrected by the voter
Improved transparency in how counties handle ballots

As Amy explained, the date on an envelope is not a security feature; Barcodes and timestamped postage already ensure legitimacy. Improving the rules would instantly prevent tens of thousands of votes from being tossed every election.

Problem #4: Barriers to Registration and In-Person Voting

Many people want to vote. The system gets in their way

Common issues include:

Missing the 30-day registration deadline
Being unable to get to your assigned polling location
Working long hours without flexibility
Not having childcare
Recently moving and not knowing where to vote
Being housing-insecure and lacking a permanent address

Voters also believe they need a driver's license to register. That is false.

→ Solution: Same-Day Registration & Expanded Early Voting

Same-day registration (SDR) lets voters register and vote in one trip. It is already in use in many states and is proven to increase turnout, reduce registration confusion, help young and working voters, and increase the accuracy of voter rolls. Early voting also dramatically reduces Election Day congestion and scheduling barriers.

Amy supports reforms such as:

Same-day voter registration
True early in-person voting
Expanding poll hours
Making Election Day a weekend or 24-hour period

These reforms make voting easier without compromising security.

Problem #5: Misinformation About Voter ID, Fraud, and Eligibility

Americans distrust the system — often because they’ve been given false information

In our conversation, Amy addressed several myths:

❌ Myth: Anyone can vote with a utility bill

Reality: Only a registered voter can vote. Registration requires citizenship verification by the state. A utility bill is not a registration document. It's one of many acceptable IDs for first-time voters, and used to match the voter to their address.

❌ Myth: Non-citizens are voting

Reality: Election officials verify citizenship during the registration process. Non-citizens are removed or rejected.

❌ Myth: Dead people stay on voter rolls

Reality: All states have procedures to remove deceased or inactive voters, using Social Security death records and inactivity checks.

→ Solution: Trusted Information, Transparency & Civic Education

LWV is nonpartisan and focuses on providing factual resources, helping voters check their registration and understand ballots before voting, and combatting misinformation that discourages participation. The best resource they recommend is Vote411.org (run by LWV). Type your address. See your ballot. Print a personalized cheat sheet to bring with you to the polls.

Problem #6: Many Citizens Believe Felons Can’t Vote

A myth harming voter participation

Reality: Most states allow people with felony convictions to vote. And the League supports restoring voting rights because people who’ve served their sentence are citizens, democracy benefits when more people engage, and restricting voting rights has historically been abused to target certain groups.

Amy points out, our criminal justice system is supposed to restore people after they’ve “paid their debt to society. This aligns with democratic principles, not partisan ones, and is a major civil rights issue that crosses party lines.

→ Solution: Protect and Expand Voting Rights Restoration

States should:

Clarify the law
Inform eligible citizens of their voting rights
Make the restoration process automatic where possible

Problem #7: Americans Aren’t Taught How Democracy Actually Works

Without civic education, people can’t meaningfully participate

Amy noted a painful truth: “We don’t have a great civic education infrastructure in this country. People don’t know what local officials do, how districts are drawn, what the rules are, and what their rights are. When people feel uninformed, they disengage.

→ Solution: Rebuild Civic Education and Empower Local Voter Organizations

The mission is grounded in education: Voter guides, community events, school outreach, public information campaigns, and simple, plain-language explanations of voting processes.Education is empowerment. Empowerment is participation. Participation is democracy.

What Can You Do?

Amy left us with simple and powerful marching orders:

1. Register — And Vote in EVERY election.

Local. State. Primary. Judicial. Every vote builds the habit.

2. Use Vote411.org.

This is the #1 practical step to becoming an informed voter. Check your registration, find your polling place, and preview your ballot.

3. Support or join the League of Women Voters.

Men have been members since 1974. Membership starts at age 16. LWV is nonpartisan, trustworthy, and volunteer-driven. Find your state chapter at LWV.org.

Final Thought: Democracy Is a Participation System, Not a Spectator Sport

Voting should be simple. Fair. Accessible.Transparent. Meaningful.It only becomes as such when voters understand how the system works, and when we collectively push for reforms that strengthen fairness rather than entrench power.

As Amy put it, “Every election is an important election. Every time you vote, you build the muscle of democratic participation.” This isn’t someone else’s job. It’s ours. Get informed. Get registered. Get voting. Support organizations doing the hard work to protect your voice.

Because democracy doesn’t defend itself — people do.

Editor’s Note: This article is based on my podcast interview with Amy Widestrom, published on September 19, 2024. The ideas discussed here originate from that conversation. The structure, emphasis, and commentary are my own. Any errors or interpretations should be attributed to me, not to Amy Widestrom. This article is for educational purposes only. Nothing in this article should be considered an endorsement by the league of women voters.

If you haven't heard my full conversation with Amy Widestrom, listen or watch:

Empowering Voters and Defending Democracy with guest Amy Widestrom, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters