Voice for Democracy

Newsletter of Californians for Electoral Reform

Winter 2006

Citizens’ Assembly Houseparties Set for June

You are invited to host a houseparty.  It’s easy and fun, and CfER will help you every step of the way. Watch your email inbox and https://www.cfer.org for an announcement of the exact date, which will be soon after the June 6 primary election (having first been set for March 18 and then postponed).

CfER’s houseparty program is a first step towards an informed and active public, working to fix our democracy.  Our June event will focus on how British Columbia used a unique and powerful Citizens’ Assembly process to solve some of the most challenging and politically difficult electoral problems they face.  We will discuss ACA 28, landmark legislation in the California Legislature to do the same thing, and learn how we can support this effort.

What are houseparties?  How does this work? A houseparty is a simple gathering in your home in which you invite a bunch of your friends and neighbors and then discuss important issues.  In this case, we’ll be discussing our electoral systems and how we can fix them.

You can invite anywhere from a couple of people to 50 or more, and we will help you make your party a success.  You don’t need to provide lots of food or drink to have a successful party, and we will provide an agenda and materials like flyers and videos. We will also host a conference call with a leading expert, which your group can dial in to.

We expect that our featured guest at the June houseparties will be Gordon Gibson, who designed the British Columbia Citizens’ Assembly in 2003 at the request of the provincial government.  Gibson is a former leader of the B.C. Liberal Party and former member of the provincial legislature. He is now a senior fellow in Canadian studies at the Fraser Institute in Vancouver, B.C., and a consultant on public and social issues.

How do I participate? Host a houseparty for electoral reform. As soon as the date is announced, you will be able to sign up at http://www.partyhostcenter.com/fullrepresentation to set up your party and immediately be able to invite friends, etc.  We'll give you a personal website for your party, keep track of RSVPs for you, and more.  You may also sign up by email at .

If you can’t host, please attend. Reserve the date as soon as it is announced.

Even if you can’t attend, please publicize. Help us get the word out about these parties. Invite a bunch of your friends to participate and spread the word to your email lists.  An Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) version of a publicity flyer that you can download and print will be available on the CfER website.

If you have questions or comments, please contact Rob Dickinson at or (650) 544-5925.

Rob Dickinson, Executive Vice President