Americans are required to pay taxes, serve on juries, get their kids vaccinated, get driver’s licenses and sometimes go to war for their country. So, why not ask—or require—every American to vote? Join UVA's Karsh Institute of Democracy and the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy for a conversation with E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport on their recent book, “100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting.” The discussion, moderated by Karsh Institute Executive Director Melody Barnes and Batten School Dean Ian Solomon, will examine voter participation in America, social and legal frameworks for the electoral process, and the role of civic duty in a healthy democracy.

About the Authors

E.J. Dionne is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post, and university professor in the Foundations of Democracy and Culture at Georgetown University. A nationally known and respected commentator on politics, Dionne appears weekly on National Public Radio and regularly on MSNBC.

Miles Rapoport is the Executive Director of 100% Democracy: An Initiative for Universal Voting and a senior practice fellow in American democracy at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School. He formerly served in the Connecticut state legislature and as Connecticut’s secretary of the state. He also served as president of Demos and Common Cause.