Same cards for everyone: every party, every candidate, every office

Every official and every candidate gets the same ten cards: the same ten subjects, the same fixed $1 billion, the same 0 to 10 grading scale and the same opinion questions, in every party and every race. The cards carry no party field, no special fields for incumbents and no space for slogans. My Vote Forward endorses no one and takes no candidate sponsorship. Neutrality is built into the format, and the people who use the cards keep it by applying them the same way to everyone.

What exactly is the same for every candidate?

Everything on the Top 10 is the same for every candidate, and nothing is added for anyone.

• The ten subjects. Education, economy and work, health and care, housing and communities, infrastructure and transport, environment and energy, safety and justice, government and rights, immigration and citizenship, and defense and foreign affairs. The list and each subject’s scope are published on Subjects, and MyPriorities puts them, and the issues inside each, in each candidate’s order.
• The budget. A fixed $1 billion, split across the ten. See MyBudget for officials.
• The scale. A grade from 0 to 10 for how the government is doing now on each subject.
• The questions. The same opinion questions on each subject, each with two honest sides and room for the middle.
• The record. In “I’m running for office” mode, every candidate shares the same thing: the full PDF record, produced only once every subject and every answer is complete, with name, office and date completed on the cover.

A citizen fills out the same cards. A senator, a mayor and a first time school board candidate are measured on exactly what their constituents are measured on.

Why is there no party field on the cards?

There is no party field on the cards because a party label invites voters to read the label instead of the answers. A Top 10 shows what one person thinks, subject by subject. Two candidates from the same party can differ on several cards, and two candidates from different parties can agree on some. Those differences and agreements are what voters cannot see on a party line, and they are what the cards show.

Candidates can name their party in “In my words” or in the post that links their record. The cards themselves stay the same for everyone, including independents and candidates in nonpartisan races such as many school board elections.

How does My Vote Forward keep money out of the cards?

My Vote Forward keeps money out of the cards by ruling out the ways money could reach them. The project accepts no donations, sells no memberships and rules out selling data, paid influence, pay-to-rank, candidate sponsorship and campaign targeting. The full statement is on Who funds it?. No candidate can pay for placement, a different question or a better position on the board, and the officials list on the board shows examples only, never real people.

Who writes the subjects and the questions, and how is that kept fair?

The project chose the ten subjects and writes the opinion questions, and it says so in public. Whoever writes a list or a question holds real influence over the answers, and the site answers that objection directly on Who chooses the ten? and Who writes the questions?. The working rules: publish the exact wording of every question, give every question two honest sides and room for the middle, and accept challenges to wording through the contact page.

A candidate who believes a question is worded unfairly should still answer it, and can say why in their post. That record helps improve the question for everyone.

What does fair use of the cards look like?

Fair use of the cards looks like the same request, at the same time, in the same words, shown in the same format for every candidate. Two familiar standards in American law describe the same idea. Federal rules for candidate debates require staging organizations to use pre-established objective criteria to decide which candidates take part, and not to structure a debate to promote or advance one candidate over another.⁠¹ The IRS treats voter education with evidence of bias that would favor one candidate over another as prohibited for 501(c)(3) organizations, while non-partisan voter guides and forums are not.⁠²

For anyone using the cards, that comes down to four habits:

1. Ask every candidate in a race at once. Never only the one you oppose.
2. Show every candidate the same way. Same space, same fields, same label for silence. See Not answered yet.
3. Quote the cards exactly. A shortened answer can change its meaning.
4. Set a rule for order and state it. Alphabetical order works for most guides.

Does the same format favor any kind of candidate?

The same format favors candidates who are willing to answer, and that is the only advantage it gives. A well funded campaign and a volunteer campaign get the same ten cards and the same full record. A challenger with no voting record can show exactly where they stand. An incumbent can show their priorities beyond the votes they have cast. See MyGrade for incumbents and challengers.

A candidate who prefers to stay vague will find the format uncomfortable. That discomfort is the format working as intended, and it applies to every party equally.

Unresolved questions

Two questions about neutrality are still open.

1. Independent review. Who should review the opinion questions for balance, so the project is not the only judge of its own wording?
2. Late entries. How should a guide treat a candidate who enters a race late, so they are asked on the same terms and given the same time to answer?

Make my Top 10

Make your Top 10 now: the same ten cards every candidate fills out.

Make my Top 10I’m running for office