None of the above

The above is certainly one of Grayson's last floor speeches-- at least until 2019-- and he made the best of it with a proposal I've been waiting for. In fact, I think it's a proposal many people outside of the professional political class, regardless of party, will be excited about: NONE OF THE ABOVE as a ballot designation in federal elections. I talked with Grayson several times while he was writing the bill and I know he didn't just have presidential elections in mind-- let alone this particular one-- although I suspect many people will interpret it that way.

Oklahoma is arguably the reddest state in the country. LBJ beat Goldwater in 1964 but that was it. After that the state belonged to the GOP. The last Democrat to carry even one county was Gore in 2000. Both senators and all 5 House members are far right Republicans-- as is the governor. The state Senate has 40 Republicans and 8 Democrats and the state House has 71 Republicans and 28 Democrats. The state Democratic Party atrophied and died. Pollsters aren't even doing surveys of the state.

There is an ‘unheard third’ of the UK who choose not to vote in general elections. But, argues Simon Pardoe, by turning up at the polls, even to vote 'none', they could help change the system that they seem so dissatisfied with