Democracy Without Politicians

694. Does Democracy Really Need Elections?

Freakonomics Radio, 6 November 2026. The author is the guest. The book comes up at 12 min 50 sec in.

Terry Bouricius, a former Burlington politician who served alongside Bernie Sanders, is interviewed about his newly published book throughout the episode. He argues that electoral politics structurally rewards narcissism and partisanship, and that sortition—randomly selected citizen assemblies—would produce more representative governance. New York Governor Kathy Hochul, hearing of the book from the host, says she is intrigued and may read it.

Listen to this episode ↗︎