Politics can play a major role in climate change. President Trump, for example, issued an Executive Order withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement, a major international treaty designed to coordinate global climate mitigation, arguing that it hurt the U.S. economy. Will that action motivate voters to show up in November? More broadly, how well does democracy work if people who care deeply about an existential issue don’t turn out to vote?

Our guest has spent the past decade working on this issue.

Nathaniel Stinnett is the founder and CEO of the Environmental Voter Project, which uses sophisticated data analytics and behavioral science to identify environmentalists who are registered to vote but do not regularly cast ballots—and then works to turn them into consistent voters.

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No wonder we have such a hard time talking about the biggest issues of the day without it devolving into partisan bickering. Many Americans feel more isolated in their political views than ever before. We assume the worst about “the other side.” We unfriend people we disagree with. We curate our media diets. And too often, when political conversations do happen, they quickly devolve into defensiveness, caricature, and partisan bickering. But democracy depends on citizens talking to one another—listening, questioning, and ultimately persuading. Democracy requires productive political conversations.

Here to teach us how to have better conversations across the political divide is Monica Guzman. She’s a self-described bridge builder, a journalist, and the author of the best-selling book, “I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times.”

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Our democratic institutions face intense strain. Structural features of the Constitution—such as the Electoral College, the Senate’s equal representation of the states, and the powers of the Supreme Court—have produced a system that can feel distant from majority rule.

At the same time, the country confronts extreme political polarization, persistent racial inequality, and declining civic engagement. Free speech, both on campus and in public discourse, is also under pressure, shaping the debates we have about politics and society.

All of this raises a fundamental question: Is the Constitution equipped to sustain American democracy in the twenty-first century?

Our guest has thought deeply about these questions. Erwin Chemerinsky, cited by National Jurist magazine as the most influential person in legal education in the United States, is the Dean of Berkeley Law School in California. He’s also the author of No Democracy Lasts Forever: How the Constitution Threatens the United States and Campus Speech and Academic Freedom: A Guide for Difficult Times.

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The 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1971, effectively lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. Young people were asked to fight in the Vietnam War, which many of them opposed. They organized anti-war protests on school campuses all across the country. “Old enough to fight, old enough to vote” became a common rallying cry. But these days, young people have not embraced their voting power in significant numbers. The youngest age group turns out to vote at the lowest rate among all age groups, often by a significant margin. 

Our guest wants to help, and she’s built an organization to do just that. Laura Brill is the CEO & Founder of The Civics Center, an organization focused on promoting voter registration for young people. 

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On this episode, Joshua Douglas speaks to Joyce Vance, author of Giving Up is Unforgivable: A Manual for Keeping Our Democracy. In the book, Vance says democracy is the collective responsibility of all concerned Americans and that each of us has a role in preserving that democracy. 

Joyce Vance is a New York Times bestselling author, former United States Attorney, and current professor at the University of Alabama School of Law. She’s also a legal analyst for MS Now—formerly known as MSNBC—writes the Civil Discourse newsletter on Substack, and co-hosts two podcasts, SistersInLaw and The Insider.

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Surveys show that there’s a real lack of trust in the news media. Why is that? And how do we rebuild that trust? And how can people know that they are consuming news from a trustworthy source? Among the many questions for Jamie Lucke, founding editor of the online news source, Kentucky Lantern.

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Many people can name the Kentucky Governor, but what about Kentucky’s Lieutenant Governor? Do you know what she does and how her work impacts your daily life? Do you know her main priorities? We are about to find out. Lt. Governor Jacqueline Coleman is our first guest in this episode of our series, “Democracy Optimist,” hosted by University of Kentucky election law and voting rights research professor Joshua Douglas. Coleman is the 58th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky. She has served as a high school teacher, school administrator, and basketball coach. and was recently chosen to chair the National Lieutenant Governors Association for 2026-27. 

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CivicLex founder and Executive Director Richard Young discusses the details of the much-watched “Civic Assembly,” an exercise in true grassroots democracy currently underway in Fayette County, Kentucky.

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Joining Josh Douglas to discuss the work of Citizen University is one of its co-founders, Eric Liu. As the author of Become America: Civic Sermons on Love, Responsibility, and Democracy, Liu has thought a lot about what it means to be an engaged citizen in 2026.

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Boyle Co. H.S. senior Luisa Sanchez of the Kentucky Student Voice Team and KSVT managing partner Rachel Belin discuss the organization’s lawsuit claiming the state has failed its constitutional duty under Section 183 of the Kentucky Constitution to provide “an efficient system of common schools.”

Joshua Douglas speaks to LaJuan Allen, the Executive Director of Vote16USA, a nonprofit dedicated to lowering the voting age to 16 in response to concerns about youth engagement, civic readiness, and the long-term health of our democracy. 

Joshua Douglas speaks to Evan Weissman, the founder of “Warm Cookies of the Revolution,” which he refers to as a “civic health club.” The organization promotes civic health by creating an enjoyable and engaging atmosphere to discuss social issues that are critical to people’s lives—and they bring warm cookies to every event. Weissman has won several awards for his efforts, which have engaged more than one million people.

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Joshua Douglas speaks to Carly Muetterties, chair of the Kentucky Civic Education Coalition, promoting civic education in public schools. She is a former high school social studies teacher, an expert in civic education, and co-founder of “Common Good Ed,” an organization that provides educational resources to diverse communities.

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Dan Wu is the first Asian American to serve as Vice Mayor of Lexington. He served on numerous local boards before winning election as Vice Mayor, but before that, he had little experience in politics, instead opening his own ramen shop and appearing on the TV show Master Chef. Wu has become a passionate advocate for civic engagement.

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Ben Sheehan, host, writer, and producer of “Civics Made Easy,” a series on PBS that empowers viewers with the knowledge necessary to participate in democracy. He also writes a Substack titled “Politics Made Easy.” He is the author of the best-selling book, “What Does the Constitution Actually Say?: A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy is Supposed to Work.”

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Democracy is about representation. Elected officials should fairly represent the interests of their constituents. But what causes someone to run in the first place? What is it like when they first take office? And how does it feel when you enter the halls of government, especially in the minority party?  Here to give us an inside view of how democracy and representation actually work is Anne Donworth, who represents the 76^th district, which covers much of Lexington, in the Kentucky House of Representatives.

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Disputes over redistricting have gone into overdrive as some states have engaged in what we call mid-decade redistricting or re-redistricting. These states drew the lines for congressional seats back in 2021, which are supposed to last for the entire decade. But, spurred by President Trump, Texas redrew its map to turn five seats that were more favorable to Democrats into ones more winnable for Republicans. In response, California put a measure on the ballot in November to redraw its own map to make five Republican-leaning districts into Democratic ones. It’s a race to the bottom with partisan gerrymandering run rampant. And it could have a major impact on which party controls Congress after the 2026 midterm elections. 

 Missouri is also part of the fight, redrawing its map to split up the Kansas City area into several districts, which will likely flip one seat from Democratic to Republican. Lawsuits have predictably ensued.

Joining us to discuss that mid-decade redistricting in Missouri and the litigation over the map is Denise Lieberman. She is the Director & General Counsel of the Missouri Voter Protection Coalition, a non-partisan organization that works to advance free, fair, and accessible elections in Missouri. She is also the Faculty Director of the Voter Access and Engagement Initiative at Washington University in St. Louis. 

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After the November 2024 election, numerous stories emerged about how voter turnout was high—the second-highest in a century, in fact, second only to 2020. Yet turnout nationwide was under 64 percent. Over 1/3 of eligible voters did not show up. How can we celebrate strong voter engagement or an electoral mandate when more people didn’t vote than voted for the winner?  But at least one state has consistently been among the top in voter turnout. Minnesota, the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes, has a strong culture of democratic engagement. Joining us to discuss Minnesota’s success is its Secretary of State, Steve Simon. Secretary Simon is a former five-time member of the Minnesota House of Representatives and has been elected to the office of Secretary of State three times. Secretary Simon is particularly proud of his state’s record on voter turnout.  

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People hear the phrase “civics education,” and they often think of K-12 classes in government. States have enacted laws that require high school students to be able to pass the same citizenship test that new citizens must take. What can we do to ensure civics is not just something we discuss briefly in school but instead is a lifelong endeavor? Our guest, Donna Cohen, is a former educator and librarian in Oregon. She runs a program called “Civics for Adults,” which includes interactive in-person or virtual workshops that provide nonpartisan information about the political process and civic engagement.

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Corey Brettschneider, a professor of political science at Brown University, teaches law and political theory. He’s the author of multiple books, most recently, The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It. He’s also the co-host of a new podcast, The Oath and the Office.

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Jennifer Mercieca is a historian of American political rhetoric and a Professor in the Department of Communication and Journalism at Texas A&M University. She writes about American political discourse, especially as it relates to citizenship, democracy, and the presidency, and has published three books: Founding Fictions, The Rhetoric of Heroic Expectations: Establishing the Obama Presidency, and Demagogue for President: The Rhetorical Genius of Donald Trump. Her work aims to make our communication with one another more democratic.

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It’s not a stretch to say that the Supreme Court plays an outsized role in our democracy, determining the scope of various rights, such as abortion, immigration, and the right to vote. We hear a lot about how the current Supreme Court focuses on originalism, or the idea that it must interpret the Constitution just how the Framers would have understood it. Under this theory, judges should not really consider how a constitutional principle might operate in today’s society. Instead, they must figure out the original public meaning of a word or clause and interpret the phrase consistently with that understanding. Supporters of originalism say that it limits judges, forcing them to consider the Framers’ views instead of their own opinions.

How did the Court fully embrace this idea? Is it the proper way to construe the Constitution? Joining Josh Douglas to discuss the reasons behind the Court’s current approach is Madiba Dennie. She’s the Deputy Editor and Senior Contributor at the critical legal commentary outlet Balls and Strikes. She’s also the author of the new book, “The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take It Back.”

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As the saying goes, history is bound to repeat itself. America has gone through tumultuous periods in its past. The Constitutional Convention included heated debates about the core ideals of our democracy. We have endured the Civil War, the Jim Crow era, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights movement, and so much more. Many think we are in another significant period of change and turmoil. How should history inform our understanding of today’s Democracy? What lessons can we learn to help sustain our system, particularly in light of the current threats? Joining Josh Douglas to discuss those issues is author, historian, and professor Heather Cox Richardson. Heather is a professor at Boston College, teaching several courses on American history. Her most recent book is Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America, where she traces the history of our democracy to its roots, using the past as a lesson for our future. She also publishes the newsletter Letters from an American, where she examines current political developments

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American democracy requires both major political parties to embrace the core idea of democracy. And young people are the key to sustaining a democracy movement that can endure. Scott Warren has spent his career working on both issues—creating a culture of youth engagement and fostering a democracy movement for all sides of the political spectrum. Scott co-founded the organization “Generation Citizen,” which empowers young people by improving local civics education all across the country. He also launched Democracy Moves, an international network of youth activists pushing for democratic change. Now he is a visiting fellow at Johns Hopkins University, where he is focused on building a pro-democracy conservative movement in the United States.

Democracy must have at least two robust parties that both agree on certain core values—in particular, the importance of democratic institutions and accepting election outcomes. From 2021 to early 2025, Stephen Richer served as the County Recorder, administering elections in Maricopa County, Arizona, which includes Phoenix. After strongly defending the integrity of the 2020 election, he lost the 2024 Republican primary election for his office but continued to serve voters admirably in running the 2024 election in the nation’s second-largest voting jurisdiction. Richer is currently a senior practice fellow in American democracy at the Ash Center of Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Offering an international perspective on elections and democracy is Dr. Fernanda Buril, the Deputy Director of the Center for Applied Research and Learning at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems. She’s an expert on sustaining democracy.

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It’s early 2025, but plans are already underway for the 2026 midterm elections and the 2028 presidential election. Joining series host Josh Douglas to discuss the inner workings of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission is Ben Hovland, one of the four Commissioners on the EAC and its current Chair.

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This week on the Eastern Standard series, “Democracy Optimist”:

Taped live before a student audience at the University of Kentucky Rosenberg College of Law, the final installment in this 17-part election year series focuses on key interviews about election integrity and security, voting access, and voter rights. And host Josh Douglas, a research professor of election law and voting rights at UK, fields questions about voting and elections from students in the audience.

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Since the enactment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the law has been steadily diluted by a series of Supreme Court decisions. We take you back to President Lyndon Johnson's appeal for passage of the Act before a joint session of Congress, look at the subsequent actions of the Supreme Court, and offer perspectives from a series of guests on why it's important to vote.

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What is it like to serve in a state legislature, be the Missouri secretary of state, run for U.S. Senate, create a voting rights organization, and flirt with running for president? Our guest, Jason Kander, has seemingly done it all, with a particular focus on improving our election system and expanding the right to vote.

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It’s often been said that election officials were the heroes of the 2020 election. Facing unprecedented attacks on the election system and a global pandemic, they managed to pull off an impressive feat: a secure election with the most voters ever. Election officials are a vital part of the administration of voting. It’s a year-round job as they prepare for upcoming elections, audit previous ones, and make sure everything goes smoothly. In this episode of Democracy Optimist, Josh Douglas' guest is Jennifer Morrell, a former election official and now CEO and Co-Founder of The Elections Group, an organization that helps to support election officials, offering resources and support to better professionalize the role.

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Are American elections secure? Could the voting machines be hacked? Could another country interfere? And what are we doing to prevent cyberattacks on the election system—and to convince the American public that our elections are, in fact, secure? Host Josh Douglas raises these questions and more with Kim Wyman, the former Washington Secretary of State, former Senior Election Security Advisor for the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and current Senior Advisor for the Elections Project at the Bipartisan Policy Center.

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The traditional view is that blue states are making it easier to vote and red states are making it harder. That’s not entirely true—there are blue states with voter restrictions and red states with pro-voter policies. But shouldn’t the ideal be truly bipartisan voting rules? Is there a way to come together to work on principles on which everyone can agree? And how do we ensure that election professionals are in the room to help make these decisions? Here to discuss these issues is Trey Greyson, former Kentucky Secretary of State and now leader of the Lobbying and Public Policy practice group at the law firm, Frost Brown Todd.

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Many ask why we use the Electoral College to elect the president. It might seem arcane in today’s world. Many say it’s unfair and that we should use a national popular vote, especially after the candidate with the most votes nationwide did not win the presidency in both 2000 and 2016. Joining us to explain the history of the Electoral College is Carolyn Dupont, an Associate Professor of History at Eastern Kentucky University and author of Distorting Democracy: The Forgotten History of the Electoral College—and Why It Matters Today.

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You may be aware of the Federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, but did you know that some states have Voting Rights Acts of their own? Seven states have these laws on their books. Find out which ones from Lata Nott, Senior Legal Counsel at the Campaign Legal Center.

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From strict voter ID laws that don’t recognize tribal IDs, to limits on allowing others to deliver their ballots, many Native Americans face voter suppression. Our guest is Jean Schroedel, author of Voting in Indian Country: The View from the Trenches.

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Ranked Choice Voting

In this episode, Josh talks with Rob Richie, co-founder of FairVote, a nonpartisan organization that has promoted Ranked Choice Voting.

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How America Nominates Its Presidential Candidates

Our guest is Elaine Kamarck, a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies, and Director of the Center for Effective Public Management at the Brookings Institution. Dr. Kamarck is the author of “Primary Politics: Everything You Need to Know about How America Nominates Its Presidential Candidates” and “Why Presidents Fail And How They Can Succeed Again.”

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On Democracy Optimist, Joshua Douglas speaks to Jamie Long, the majority leader of the House of Representatives in Minnesota and an expert on the mechanics of elections.

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On Democracy Optimist, Joshua Douglas speaks to Jeff Clements, head of American Promise, a grassroots advocacy group promoting a constitutional amendment that would, quote, “tackle the out-of-control money in our campaigns and elections” and overturn the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United.

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Our guest is decorated Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Al Cross, one of the most significant reporters in Kentucky, particularly in the area of politics as well as lifting up the voices of rural communities.

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“What’s On the Ballot,” a cheat sheet of elections everywhere. is the brainchild of Daniel Nichanian, a reporter and the founder of Bolts Magazine. Bolts covers the “nuts and bolts of power and political change” with a bottom-up approach, focusing primarily on state and local issues that shape public policy but are largely overlooked by the national media.

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39 states elect at least some of their judges. The amount of money raised and spent in judicial campaigns has soared. Joining us to discuss the implications are Joanna Shepherd and Michael Kang, authors of “Free to Judge: The Power of Campaign Money in Judicial Elections.” Kang is a law professor at Northwestern University and Shepherd is a professor of law at Emory University.

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Most people agree that the Kentucky Republicans drew a severely gerrymandered map in this past redistricting cycle, helping to turn their legislative majority into a supermajority. Democrats challenged the state House and congressional maps, and the case went all the way to the Kentucky Supreme Court, where the court upheld the maps as drawn. But Justice Michelle Keller dissented from part of that ruling. Justice Keller joins us to discuss the case.

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County clerks are at the frontlines of our elections. They are the people who decide where the polling places are located, which voting machines to use, and how to ensure there are enough poll workers. Two Kentucky county clerks join us to explain how elections operate. Susan Lamb is the county clerk of Fayette County, which includes Lexington, the state’s second-largest city. Kenny Barger is the county clerk in Madison County, which encompasses Richmond, Ky.

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David Becker, Executive Director and Founder of the nonpartisan, non-profit Center for Election Innovation and Research is our guest. You’ve heard about Zuckerbucks, right? Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Pricilla Chan donated almost $400 million to local election officials to help run the 2020 election during the pandemic. Critics claim the funds were used in only liberal-leaning places. Is that true? Josh takes up that issue and more with David Becker.

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Voter turnout in America is usually quite low: about 66 percent of the electorate cast ballots in 2020, which was considered high, but one-third of registered voters didn’t vote. Could we adopt compulsory voting, like they have in Australia, Belgium, and several places in South America and Latin America? Our guest: EJ Dionne, Washington Post columnist, Brookings Institution senior fellow in governance studies, and co-author with Miles Rapaport of 100% Democracy, The Case for Universal Voting.

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What is the role of the journalist concerning American democracy? Our guest: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Joe Sonka, whose work with the Louisville Courier-Journal and Kentucky Public Radio has been vital to awareness of the workings of democracy in Kentucky.

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Amber McReynolds, vice chair of the United States Postal Service Board of Governors, is our guest in this episode. McReynolds focuses on the postal service’s processing of mail-in ballots and is the person who guarantees that millions of ballots are processed correctly.

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Officers of the League of Women Voters of Kentucky join Josh to discuss the power of a nonprofit advocacy organization with a storied history to fight for significant changes to how we run our elections. The League has been active in debates on the state’s voter ID law, redistricting, and efforts to improve transparency within Kentucky’s government. Our guests: Jennifer Jackson, President; Becky Jones, First Vice President; and Laura Weinstein, Voter Services Chair.

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