Dismantling the Political Duopoly

Abstract

The last U.S. presidential election cycle was marked by a number of unprecedented events, including thirty-four felony charges against one of the two major party candidates, an attempted political assassination targeting that same candidate, and the replacement of the other major party candidate with one who did not run in the primary. These and other developments underscore widespread concerns of American voters over increasing polarization and the lack of meaningful choices where two parties monopolize the system. There is a lively contemporary debate about how well, or poorly, the current political system represents the will of the people, and how it might be improved consistent with constitutional principles. This essay contributes to the existing scholarship by examining the duopolistic two-party system through the lens of free market competition. The politics industry operates on the same set of principles and incentives as any other, and requires open and robust competition to generate products that best serve consumers’ needs. The lack of competition in the politics industry deprives voters of meaningful alternatives, and operates primarily to benefit wealthy interests and entrench the two major parties. This has a negative impact on Americans’ lives. The essay proposes three potential solutions—ranked choice voting, nonpartisan primaries, and independent redistricting commissions. If implemented, these would help democratize the current duopolistic system, thereby enhancing representative government and restoring public trust.

Keywords: two-party system, political duopoly, politics industry, polarization, third parties, open primaries, ranked choice voting, independent redistricting commissions