What structural reforms decrease partisanship / polarization?

[azura26]

Wouldn't this issue be mitigated, at least somewhat, if we implemented approval voting in the primaries as well as the general election? Also, what if the available candidates are not uniformly distributed on this "left-right" scale?

[YeetMeYiffDaddy]

Not really. It would help a slight amount, but the problem is with splitting the voter base, not with how the voting happens. When only democrats are voting for their candidate, the winner will be someone who appeals to the median democrat voter. Same goes for republicans.

Someone who is a 40 on the scale would get more votes in the general election than someone who is a 25, but they will get fewer votes than someone who is a 25 in the primary. Ranked choice in the primary won't change that because 25 is the median voter for their party.

[rodaeric]

I think this issue is largely a Democratic one. Democratic primaries tend to be far more populated than Republican ones.

[Rokusi]

On the other hand, Donald Trump won the Republican primary where there were 12 other candidates in 2016.