A recent Just the News Daily Poll found a plurality of respondents believe their elected representative should vote to reflect the views of his/her constituents, rather than voting for the policy the representative believes is best. There is approximately zero probability that all constituents share the same view. Perhaps those respondents imagined the politician reflecting the respondent’s personal view, rather than that of their deranged neighbor who votes for the wrong party. Still, the response of the plurality kind of makes sense.
We have become accustomed to politicians who publicly say what they think constituents want to hear with little regard for what the politicians actually believe. In this scenario, a politician who votes his/her own views without regard to those of his/her constituents undermines popular sovereignty.
A better system would be for politicians to clearly and publicly state their true beliefs, and then, after analyzing the issue, vote in accordance with those beliefs. Those votes may not always reflect the views of their constituents, but they would be in line with what the constituents expected when choosing the representative.
I’m not holding my breath.
Posted 2021/02/14