Should the U.S. Have a Multi-Party System?
Background
According to the Pew Research Center, it has been over 50 years since a candidate who was not from the Democratic or Republican party has won any state in a presidential election. Independent and third-party candidates struggle to gain traction, but many U.S. adults report unfavorable views of the dominant parties and a desire for more political parties and candidates to choose from. This Common Ground conversation will explore the benefits and challenges of moving toward a multi-party system in the U.S.
Former Lt. Governor Kerry Healey is the executive chair of the Forward Party. The Forward Party (FWD) is a centrist political party founded in 2021 by former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang. Lt. Governor Healey served under Governor Mitt Romney from 2003 to 2007 and she was president of Babson College from 2013 to 2019. She has held several board and council positions focusing on foreign and domestic public policy and is currently a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Former U.S. Senator Doug Jones was the first Democrat in 25 years to represent Alabama in the U.S. Senate, where he served from 2018 to 2021. He is an attorney and notably prosecuted the two former Klansmen responsible for the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham that killed four young black girls. Senator Jones is currently a distinguished senior fellow with The Center for American Progress, a commentator for CNN, and an attorney for ArentFox Schiff.
Moderator Mimi Geerges is a guest host of C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal.” She also works with clients on executive media coaching, strategic communications, and event consulting. Geerges has extensive experience hosting, interviewing, and producing broadcast TV and radio, including producing and hosting her own show, “The Mimi Geerges Show,” on PBS.
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