Why US Politics Is Broken — and How To Fix It | Andrew Yang | TED

TED9 minutes read

Andrew Yang criticizes flaws in American politics and proposes solutions, emphasizing poor incentives and design flaws in the system, leading to polarization and lack of representation. He cites examples like Alaska's ranked choice voting system resulting in surprising outcomes and Senator Lisa Murkowski's re-election success despite low favorability among Alaskan Republicans, advocating for these reforms in more states to improve American politics.

Insights

  • Andrew Yang points out flaws in American politics, emphasizing poor incentives and design flaws that lead to skewed representation and polarization.
  • Alaska's shift to ranked choice voting in primaries resulted in unexpected outcomes, demonstrating the potential effectiveness of reforming the electoral system to improve representation and reduce polarization.

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Recent questions

  • What are the flaws in American politics?

    In American politics, Andrew Yang discusses poor incentives, design flaws, and skewed representation towards extreme base voters.

  • What is the approval rating of the US Congress?

    The approval rating of the US Congress is at 15%.

  • What change did Alaska make to its primary process in 2020?

    Alaska changed its primary process to ranked choice voting in 2020.

  • Who defeated Sarah Palin in Alaska due to the primary process change?

    Mary Peltola defeated Sarah Palin in Alaska.

  • What does Andrew Yang advocate for in American politics?

    Andrew Yang advocates for adopting reforms to realign incentives and improve American politics.

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Summary

00:00

"Andrew Yang proposes solutions for American politics"

  • Andrew Yang discusses the flaws in American politics and proposes solutions within ten minutes.
  • He highlights the poor incentives and design flaws in American politics.
  • The approval rating of the US Congress is at 15%, while the re-election rate for incumbent House members is 94%.
  • The system is skewed towards extreme base voters, leading to polarization and lack of representation.
  • Alaska's primary process change in 2020 to ranked choice voting resulted in surprising outcomes, like Mary Peltola defeating Sarah Palin.
  • Senator Lisa Murkowski's re-election success despite low favorability among Alaskan Republicans showcases the effectiveness of the new system.
  • The cost of adopting these reforms is minimal compared to the billions spent by major parties in elections.
  • Yang advocates for adopting these reforms in more states to realign incentives and improve American politics.
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