360° Democracy Standard

A healthy democracy depends on several pillars — not only the right to vote, but also the right to run for office, and the right to see and shape our communities. While many organizations champion one particular reform or focus on one particular aspect of our democracy, Partners In Democracy uses a holistic approach to bring together partners, draw on the strengths of a broad and inclusive coalition, and collectively carry forward a strategic, ambitious agenda for change. With our 360° Democracy Standard, we prioritize all the key pillars of a healthy democracy — ensuring we’re driving meaningful progress for the long haul.

The 360° Democracy Standard

Culture of Democratic Commitment:

Commitment to constitutional democracy & self-government
Commitment to universal participation & inclusion
Commitment to achieving due dependence of elected office holders on the people
Commitment to due responsibility: readiness to serve, to build bridges and act with mutual respect, forbearance & toleration
Commitment to understanding the difference between good and bad compromises & readiness to work for the former

Right to Vote:

All people are empowered to choose their representatives and barriers to voting (physical, legal, administrative) are actively removed
Voter turnout is correspondingly high across election types
Voter turnout does not correlate with race, language, income/wealth, place of birth, or geography

Right to Run:

Civic infrastructure and widely available public information on how to seek public office encourage all people to do so
Campaign finance law is structured to remove barriers to running, not increase the friction
Ballot access provisions create accessible pathways for serious candidates to run
Candidates are accordingly representative of their communities; a person’s choice to run for office and their successful placement on the ballot do not correlate with race, language, income/wealth, place of birth, or geography

Right to See and Shape Your Community:

Government bodies are transparent about their decision-making processes and actively seek means to communicate with the public
Media coverage of politics and the policy-making process are robust and informative; state and local news are desirable career paths.
Elections are scheduled and structured to allow voters the maximum ability to give mandates to their representatives
Voters can see meaningful policy changes as a result of their electoral choices
Members of the public have a plethora of choices to engage in the political process
Civics education is robust and instills habits of political participation

The 360° Democracy Standard

Culture of Democratic Commitment:

Commitment to constitutional democracy & self-government
Commitment to universal participation & inclusion
Commitment to achieving due dependence of elected office holders on the people
Commitment to due responsibility: readiness to serve, to build bridges and act with mutual respect, forbearance & toleration
Commitment to understanding the difference between good and bad compromises & readiness to work for the former

Right to Vote:

All people are empowered to choose their representatives and barriers to voting (physical, legal, administrative) are actively removed
Voter turnout is correspondingly high across election types
Voter turnout does not correlate with race, language, income/wealth, place of birth, or geography

Right to Run:

Civic infrastructure and widely available public information on how to seek public office encourage all people to do so
Campaign finance law is structured to remove barriers to running, not increase the friction
Ballot access provisions create accessible pathways for serious candidates to run
Candidates are accordingly representative of their communities; a person’s choice to run for office and their successful placement on the ballot do not correlate with race, language, income/wealth, place of birth, or geography

Right to See and Shape Your Community:

Government bodies are transparent about their decision-making processes and actively seek means to communicate with the public
Media coverage of politics and the policy-making process are robust and informative; state and local news are desirable career paths.
Elections are scheduled and structured to allow voters the maximum ability to give mandates to their representatives
Voters can see meaningful policy changes as a result of their electoral choices
Members of the public have a plethora of choices to engage in the political process
Civics education is robust and instills habits of political participation

Our 7-Step Process for a Healthy 360 Democracy

1. For any given state, we conduct a 360° gap analysis to clarify where democracy renovations are needed to achieve a healthy democracy statewide.

2. We create a state-specific menu of potential democracy renovation actions. The menu includes municipal and state-level changes.

3. We seek research partners to conduct research on potential governance reforms.

4. We build a coalition of grassroots organizations that see democracy renovation as necessary to the work they are trying to do to address big issues in people’s lives from housing to economy to climate.

5. We activate a statewide community of democracy renovators.

6. We run grassroots prioritization processes to select from the menu of possible democracy renovations and to determine sequencing.

7. We run or support campaigns to drive the prioritized agenda across the finish line.

Interested in getting involved? We’d love to hear from you!

Our 7-Step Process for a Healthy 360 Democracy

1. For any given state, we conduct a 360° gap analysis to clarify where democracy renovations are needed to achieve a healthy democracy statewide.

2. We create a state-specific menu of potential democracy renovation actions. The menu includes municipal and state-level changes.

3. We seek research partners to conduct research on potential governance reforms.

4. We build a coalition of grassroots organizations that see democracy renovation as necessary to the work they are trying to do to address big issues in people’s lives from housing to economy to climate.