"There is no proportional representation requirement in the Equal Protection Clause"
- Cass Sunstein
About this Quote
The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution states that no state shall "reject to any person within its jurisdiction the equal defense of the laws." Cass Sunstein's quote is highlighting that this provision does not need states to utilize proportional representation when creating their laws. Proportional representation is a system of ballot in which each political celebration is represented in proportion to the variety of votes it receives. Sunstein's quote is recommending that states are not required to utilize this system when developing laws, and that they can rather use other methods of representation. This means that states can create laws that are not always representative of the population's political views. Sunstein's quote is stressing the value of the Equal Protection Clause, and how it does not need states to utilize proportional representation when creating laws.
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