A Lottocratic Political System Would Empower Ordinary People

American democracy seems to be falling into an ever greater crisis. A lottocratic system, in which citizens are randomly selected to serve as legislators, could empower ordinary people and stem political dysfunction.

American democracy seems to be falling into an ever-greater crisis, with public approval of our political institutions continuing to fall as Donald Trump’s presidency becomes more and more authoritarian. Behind it all, both the Democratic and Republican Parties continue to be dominated by the interests of large, wealthy donors.

Some of the United States’ political dysfunction can be attributed to our particularly antimajoritarian constitutional order. But could representative elections themselves be part of the problem? Alex Guerrero, professor of philosophy at Rutgers Unive