RepresentWomen’s Cynthia Richie Terrell joins R Street’s Why Public Service? to unpack ranked choice voting and the systems reforms that help more women run, win, serve, and lead.
Podcast: Why Public Service? (R Street Institute)
Episode: 8
Guest: Cynthia Richie Terrell — Founder & Executive Director, RepresentWomen; Co-founder, FairVote
Host: Kevin Kosar
How do we make government work better—and make it more representative? In this episode of Why Public Service?, Cynthia Richie Terrell explains why durable change comes from updating systems and rules, not just candidates. Drawing on decades in governance reform—from co-founding FairVote to leading RepresentWomen—Cynthia makes the case for practical fixes that empower voters and expand women’s leadership.
Key topics:
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Why systems matter: How election rules shape outcomes—and why data-driven, structural reforms produce lasting gains.
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Ranked Choice Voting (RCV): What it is, how it ensures majority winners, reduces “spoilers,” lowers toxicity/costs, and helps multiple women compete without splitting the vote.
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Run → Win → Serve → Lead framework: Concrete policy changes that recruit, elect, support, and elevate women once in office (childcare, proxy/remote participation, fair scheduling, and pay).
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Executive leadership: What it takes to grow a reform nonprofit—vision, partnerships, research, and day-to-day operations.
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Public-service mindset: The values that sustain long-term work (community, evidence, humility)—from Quaker roots to ADA/Title IX/VRA as model systems reforms.
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Bipartisan/market-friendly lens: Why RCV and service supports fit a “free markets, real solutions” approach to more effective, efficient government.
Listen now: Why Public Service? Episode 8 — Cynthia Richie Terrell (R Street Institute)