Supreme Court Ruling on Bump Stocks Highlights Need for Electoral Reform

In a 6-3 ruling led by the right-wing majority, the Supreme Court ruled that a ban on bump stocks––gun accessories that enable semiautomatic rifles to fire at a quicker pace––was unlawful. In this 6-3 ruling, the Court established that a 100-year-old law that targeted the banning of machine guns could not also be applied to bump stocks. The accessory was banned following a 2017 Las Vegas shooting in which the device was used on a firearm to massacre 58 people in a country music festival. Unfortunately, the Court now ruled that bump stocks do not fall under the same category as machine guns under federal law, and thus, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms has no right to ban them.

Shortly following this decision, President Biden called on Congress “to ban bump stocks, pass an assault weapon ban, and take additional action to save lives.” Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico requested unanimous consent to pass the bill, but Senator Pete Ricketts of Nebraska blocked it.

This recent string of events underscores both the severe consequences of the Electoral College and the need for proportional representation in Congress. Three of the justices who voted against the ban on bump stocks were appointed by President Trump––a president who lost the popular vote. These decisions should reflect the population’s values, and these justices should be appointed by a president that the majority of Americans voted for; instead, we are left with the Supreme Court ruling the exact opposite of what the public wants.

We can’t only blame the Electoral College, however. Congress had the opportunity to pass a bill that banned bump stocks but didn’t. Despite 56% of Americans favoring stricter gun laws, such legislation has rarely passed in Congress. This is primarily because power in the legislature is allocated based on a vote of places rather than a vote of people, leading to an unfair system. When legislative power is distributed based on geographic regions rather than population, it results in an inaccurate representation of the people’s votes; this flaw prevents a true reflection of the population's values and desires in legislation. If representation were proportional and seats were allocated based on the percentage of votes, bills reflecting the population’s values and desires could be passed. Instead, we are left with legislation––or a lack thereof––that enables gun violence.

The Democracy Decree addresses both of these issues. In the proposal, both the president and vice president are elected by popular vote. Voting power in Congress is proportional to the number of votes each party or its candidates received in congressional elections. If we want a democratic society, it is imperative that we end the Electoral College and establish Proportional Representation in Congress. Sign our petition here.