Mary Peltola: “I think a couple things. You know, systemically, I think…”

“Is it campaign finance reform? Is it term limits? You know, if you had to pick one thing that could make a difference in, you know, our lifetime, what would you prioritize? I think a couple things. You know, systemically, I think getting away from these closed party primaries, because then every Republican is trying to out Republican each other. Every Democrat is trying to out Democrat each other. And it's, and then you are left with two extremes, which the middle of the road people. You know, I think that we have record low voter turnout for a reason, because people don't want to listen to this kind of bickering. Another thing that I think would be helpful is if there were more opportunities to break bread with people across party lines. If you look at the chamber, we don't have a seating arrangement. We don't have assigned seating. It's just open seating auditorium. And you'll notice that there isn't much back and forth. We have two separate cloak rooms that we eat in. So, you know, I have had very few opportunities just to eat with Republicans, and I am very eager to meet and collaborate with as many Republicans as I can. I'm a member of the western caucus, which right now is 106 Republicans and me. But I've tried to find caucuses where I would have access and be able to collaborate more with republican members. And even, like the committee structure, every committee you will see, it's Republicans on this side and Democrats on this side. And that is inherently a very bad way to engender bipartisanship and working together. So, Mary, from your time in Alaska, let's say when you first joined the legislature, there, was there anything that helped you, like, bridge the political divide? Yes.” (18:46–20:19)

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