elections for city council seats were done like juries? that is, there are say 3 open seats, and for each of the seats, a certain number of people are randomly selected to run for that seat. each of the potential candidates gets a lump sum of money to spend how they want to on the campaign. come election time, the voters decide among the candidates.
experience and interest are not a pre-requisites, and actually, i think it would be better. I’d rather have a person who is ambivalent to the notion of government running the show rather than someone who has a personal, political, or otherwise biased interest in the decision making process.
too much to at stake on the city council level from the get go? how bout we start smaller and make participation on neighborhood councils then like the jury system. get people into the notion of governing on a very local level, and work your way up from there.
