New Results: Common Cause Releases “Our Democracy 2020” Candidate Surveys

10.22.2020 / 10:47 AM
Common Cause today released the results of its Our Democracy 2020 candidate surveys. More than 200 candidates for Congress, including in certain swing House and Senate races, responded on how they promise to defend and strengthen our democracy.

Respondents answered “yes” or “no” to 16 questions on topics from amplifying small donors, to ending gerrymandering and allowing same-day voter registration. Whether candidates would support the For the People Act (HR 1/S 949), restore the Voting Rights Act, and require presidential candidates to release three years of tax returns were among the questions.

Zero incumbent Senate Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, responded to the Our Democracy 2020 survey, despite that many of the reforms included in the questionnaire passed with strong bipartisan support at the state and local level.

Other highlights from Our Democracy 2020:

  • In the U.S. Senate race in Colorado, Democratic challenger John Hickenlooper supported 16/16 reforms, while Republican incumbent Cory Gardner did not respond.
  • In one of Georgia’s races for U.S. Senate, incumbent Republican David Perdue did not respond to the survey, while Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff scored 16/16.
  • In the U.S. Senate race in Montana, Democratic challenger Steve Bullock scored 15/16, while Republican incumbent Steve Daines did not respond.
The Our Democracy 2020 survey is the companion piece to the nonpartisan watchdog organization’s Democracy Scorecard, released earlier this year, which provides data on every current member of Congress based on their votes for, or cosponsorship of, key democracy reform bills.

“Our goal is to provide voters the tools to get every candidate for Congress on the record about how they will defend our democracy, and then help voters hold officials accountable to their promises after they get elected,” said Aaron Scherb, director of legislative affairs.

Some Common Cause state chapters also posed survey questions to down ballot races. Candidates in Hawaii and Indiana submitted the most responses.

As we enter the final stretch before Election Day, Common Cause is asking voters to get more candidates on the record. We’re activating our 1.5 million members to take the following three steps:

  1. Visit https://ourdemocracy2020.org/ and enter your home address
  2. Check out the candidates on your ballot — and see if they’ve completed the survey
  3. If they haven’t — email, call, and tweet at them to demand they go on the record with just one click!
“Between now and Election Day, we must make sure candidates know how important democracy issues are to voters — and that we expect them to let us know where they stand on our common-sense democracy solutions,” Scherb said. “And after the election, we must keep mobilizing to hold the winners accountable to the promises they made — so we can strengthen our democracy in 2021 and beyond.”

The Our Democracy 2020 questionnaire’s sole purpose is to advance the issues being addressed. Common Cause does not endorse or oppose candidates for elected office.

See More: Making Government WorkVoting & Elections