FairVote held its first board event of the new year on January 21, 2005 at American University's Washington College of Law in Washington, DC, and it was a big success! The event was attended by students and community members alike and promoted provocative debate about issues of electoral reform, including a right-to-vote amendment, full representation, instant runoff voting, and abolishing the Electoral College.

Former presidential candidate John B. Anderson, law professor Jamin Raskin, Nirvana bassist-turned-activist Kirst Novoselic, Rev. Edward Hailes, and other members of FairVote's board spoke about election reform in the United States, then took questions from the diverse and opinionated audience.