Ten subjects we all share.
Make my Top 10.
The Top 10 is one board with ten cards, one for each subject we all share: education, jobs and prices, health, housing, roads and transit, environment, safety, government and rights, immigration, and defense. You do four things with them, in any order, on any device, at myvoteforward.com.
- MyPriorities. Put the ten in your order, most important first.
- MyBudget. Split $1 billion across the ten.
- MyGrade. Grade how the government is doing now on each, 0 to 10.
- MyOpinion. Say where you stand on five issues inside each subject.
Then share a card, share your Top 10, or download the whole thing as a PDF. See Sharing and your PDF.
MyPriorities: your order
MyPriorities is your order. Drag the ten cards, or use the arrows, until the subject that matters most to you is number one. Inside each subject, put its five issues in your order too.
Why an order, and not a rating?
Because everything can be rated important, and only one thing can be first. An order makes the tradeoff visible: putting housing first means putting something else lower. That is the choice a government makes every year. The research behind ranking is in Priorities and Measurement.
Where does it show up?
Your order sets the cards on your board, the order on your Top 10 image, and the order of your PDF. Inside a subject, your top three issues are the ones that go on that subject’s card when you share it.
MyBudget: $1 billion for all ten
MyBudget is $1 billion for all ten subjects together. Every subject starts with an even share. Move one up, and the others move down to pay for it. The total is always $1 billion.
MyBudget: of my $1 billion for all ten.
Why one shared budget?
Because that is how real budgets work. Saying “more for schools” is easy. Saying where the money comes from is the real decision. A fixed total turns every wish into a tradeoff you can see. See Tradeoffs.
Is it a real budget?
No. It is a way to show proportion. The real budgets of your city, state and country are far larger and split in different ways. MyBudget shows how you would weigh the ten against each other.
MyGrade: how the government is doing now
MyGrade is your grade for how the government is doing now on each subject, from 0 to 10, where you live.
MyGrade: how the government is doing now, 0 to 10.
Why grade it separately?
Because “important” and “going well” are different answers. Roads can be your number one priority and also get a 9. Housing can be number one and get a 2. The pair tells a representative far more than either alone.
Which government am I grading?
The ones that serve you: city, county, state and national. Grade the way it feels where you live. If you do not know enough to grade a subject, say so; “not enough information” is an answer too.
MyOpinion: two honest sides and the middle
Each subject holds five issues. Each issue has a short question and two sides. Slide toward the side you agree with: a little, all the way, or stay in the middle. The middle is a real place to stand.
Why twelve words?
Because short is harder. Twelve words leave no room for a phrase that sounds like a yes to everyone, and no room to hide in a paragraph. It also means every side fits on a phone and on a share card.
Who wrote the sides?
The Fair Forward Engine, under published rules. Each side is written the way its own supporters would say it, and reviewers for both sides check it before it goes live. Which side sits on the left never means a party.
What happens when I finish a subject?
You see a summary: where you stand on all five, in your order. You choose which of your top three go on that subject’s card, and you can explain your position in your own words. That note goes in your PDF only if you write one.
Sharing and your PDF
Share a card
Each subject has its own card: your rank, MyBudget, MyGrade and your top three issues. You pick which issues go on it, or none. Post it anywhere.
Share your Top 10
One image with all ten in your order, with each subject’s number one issue if you choose.
Download your PDF
Every answer you have given, in four short pages: your order, MyBudget and MyGrade side by side, then where you stand on every issue. Anything you have not answered says so. It is yours: private unless you send it.
Candidates are different
A candidate shares one thing: the full record, every answer, with name and office on it. No cards, no highlights. See Why so hard on politicians?
What happens to my answers?
They stay in your own browser. There is no account and nothing to sign. Your answers leave your device only when you share a card or download your PDF, and you choose exactly what goes on it. See Privacy.
Who writes the questions?
Nobody, by hand. Every question is written and tested by the Fair Forward Engine under published rules: twelve words a side, both sides in their own supporters’ words, checked by reviewers from both sides before anything goes live.
What about candidates?
Candidates fill out the same Top 10, every answer, themselves. Then they show all of it. See For candidates and Why so hard on politicians?
What changes, and when?
- The ten subjects change once a year, on a published date.
- What’s new: new issues and new bills appear in their own area, where everyone can rank what matters most.
- Urgent: when a public event makes an issue urgent, such as a bill scheduled for a vote, it appears as a card right away. No person decides that. The engine does, from public facts.
- Suggest: anyone can say what is missing.
What My Vote Forward can and cannot do here
Can:
- Give everyone the same ten subjects, the same questions and the same words.
- Keep your answers in your own browser until you choose to share.
Does not:
- Run official votes. Official voting belongs to election offices.
- Tell anyone how to vote, or endorse anyone.
Unresolved questions
- Counting What’s new. How to count everyone’s priorities once, fairly, without asking anyone who they are.
