It doesn't matter whether or not there are problems. The fact that people question whether there are problems is in and of itself a problem. The fact that we're having these discussions makes it clear that such a problem does exist. People need to have faith in the system for democracy to work.
Facts and figures and studies can be produced, but unfortunately that's not enough to convince people -- and that's on both sides. As much as we'd like to be, we're not perfectly rational actors, and much less so in aggregate. The existing system isn't simple or transparent enough for people to trust. That's what we need to work on.
What do we do if it turns out that the system cannot be transparent enough for some people to trust?
There exists today a large group of people who will disregard anything the government or "mainstream media" says as false, regardless of who says it or what the statement is. What do we do about those people?
I know, right? This issue of trust is really problematic right now, and not just for voting. And it's not just government and mainstream media. At this point it seems any source is potentially suspect in someone's eyes. How do we rebuild that?
I want to believe that it's solvable, because the vast majority of people I meet day-to-day are good people. I'm not willing to accept the alternative.
I do think a big part of it has to do with figuring out how to talk about contentious issues, of finding common ground (no matter how narrow), with people we might disagree with on other issues. We can't let our disagreements get in the way of making progress on our common goals.
Facts and figures and studies can be produced, but unfortunately that's not enough to convince people -- and that's on both sides. As much as we'd like to be, we're not perfectly rational actors, and much less so in aggregate. The existing system isn't simple or transparent enough for people to trust. That's what we need to work on.