Mathematics & Democracy:  Quantitative Tools for Civic Renewal

Consistent with Reform Elections Now’s mission of breaking partisan gridlock, Reform Elections Now is please to present a discussion by Professor Ismar Volic of Wellesley College, namely-

Professor Volic completed his undergraduate degree at Boston University in 1998 and his Ph.D. in mathematics at Brown University in 2003.  He has been teaching at Wellesley College since 2006.  He was the departmental chair from 2022 to 2025.

In 2019, he co-founded the Institute for Mathematics and Democracy to “promote a deeper understanding of mathematics as a pivotal force in creating a democracy where people make informed political decisions and enact change based on objective and rigorous quantitative criteria.”

Professor Volic will argue that, from a mathematical viewpoint, many of the mechanisms that underlie our democracy are outdated, unrepresentative, or simply discriminatory.  Winner-take-all races cause spoilers and vote-splitting, discourage political diversity, support the two parties’ duopoly’s iron grip, and encourage negative campaigning.  Crowded primary elections elevate fringe candidates who compete in districts that have been gerrymandered into uncompetitive insignificance.

These processes are quantitative and algorithmic, which means that mathematics can be a clear-eyed guide in telling us how to update or replace them.  For example, ranked-choice voting and multi-winner districts are just some of the quantitatively informed ways we can begin to mend our civic infrastructure, encourage political participation, elevate a diversity of opinions, and make the system work for more of us.