<div>On this week's Independent Voter Podcast: Beyond Party Politics we sit down with recent San Diego State grad Dillon Roark to discuss student engagement in the election, then interview with Rock The Vote’s VP of Civic Engagement where to delve into the millennial vote—will they vote, what will it mean, and why?</div>

Shawn M Griffiths

Losing the White House: The Cost of Neglecting the Youth Vote

Editor's Note: The following debate on gifts to Supreme Court justices <a href="https://dividedwefall.org/gifts-to-supreme-court-justices/">originally published</a> on Divided We Fall and features perspectives from MSNBC writer and lawyer Jordan Rubin and GMU Antonin Scalia Law School adjunct

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas came under intense scrutiny last year for failing to disclose lavish gifts from real estate mogul Harlan Crow. Among the questions raised by ProPublica’s reporting on the Justice and the billionaire was whether Thomas had violated disclosure requirements.

Should Gifts to Supreme Court Justices Raise Concerns?

Photo Credit: <a href="https://unsplash.com/@gettyimages">Getty Images / Unsplash</a>

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More than 40 percent of Americans think that civil war is likely in the next decade. Twenty percent believe violence can be justified in support of political objectives. And a

America is more divided today than it has been at any time in the last fifty years. The divisions in public life run so deep that they can often seem insurmountable.

How to Unite America: Offering Our Youth a Common Experience

Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@shinonk?utm_content=creditCopyText&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_source=unsplash">Shino Nakamura</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/a-statue-of-an-eagle-on-top-of-a-lamp-post-in-front-of-the-capitol-5BoZgJqGx_Q?utm_content=creditCopyText&amp;

In his latest podcast, former presidential candidate and Forward Party Co-Founder Andrew Yang sat down with Shelane Etchison, a Special Forces veteran running for Congress in North Carolina.

Can A Special Forces Veteran Win as an Independent in North Carolina?

Editor's Note: This opinion piece&nbsp;<a href="https://middleweightpolitics.substack.com/p/america-lonely-island-of-liberty">originally published</a> on author Dan Sally's personal page and has been republished on IVN with his permission.&nbsp;

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It takes a beau

It takes a beautiful media mind to know how to turn a near-death experience into the ultimate photo op before the smoke has cleared from your would-be assassin’s rifle. Trump’s defiant fist in the air while chanting “Fight” embodied the spirit of his campaign and those who follow him.

A Lonely Island of Liberty: What A Would-Be Assassin Tells Us About America's Divide

Editor's Note: The following op-ed <a href="https://thefulcrum.us/electoral-reforms/biden-primary">originally published</a> on The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/secdef/">US Secretary of Defense on Fl

This year’s Democratic Party presidential primary was a choreographed affair dubbed “Operation Bubble Wrap.” The rules were manipulated by party insiders to ensure Joe Biden would face no scrutiny and no competition. The idea that he should stay in the race because he “won the primary” is absurd. There was no primary. By design.

Opinion: Partisan Primaries Failed to Vet Joe Biden

Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/">Gage Skidmore / Flickr</a>

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The North Carolina Board of Elections reversed an initial decision to deny independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s We The People party official sta

The North Carolina Board of Elections reversed an initial decision not to give independent candidate Robert F Kennedy's 'We the People' party ballot access in November.

RFK Jr Defeats DNC Challenge in North Carolina to Appear on Ballot

Photo Credit: <a href="https://unsplash.com/@erniejourneys">Ernie Journeys / Unsplash</a>

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Ballotpedia released a report on the increased efforts in various states across the US to ban ranked choice voting (RCV), a popular nonpartisan reform that continues to ga

Ballotpedia released a report on the increased efforts in various states across the US to ban ranked choice voting, a popular nonpartisan reform that continues to gain momentum.

Report: More States Banned Ranked Choice Voting in 2024 Than Any Other Year

Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@philipsfuture">Philip Oroni on Unsplash</a>

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Last week, I recorded&nbsp;<a href="https://www.letusvote.org/r?u=50w5vJoxvXTZfDxVOUy42BcZiMc8dFFjxgt02wqEHKOh9oSOgH6bzSaeVHHL_ZX-&amp;e=e466e1c0193df8f8dd4a8fb7c825e512&amp;utm

Last week, I recorded a podcast interview with Gabe Hart. Gabe lives in western Tennessee and is a plaintiff in a lawsuit challenging voter suppression signs that are hung at every poll site in Tennessee on primary day.

Independent Voters Face Abuse and Intimidation in Tennessee Primaries

Photo Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/">Gage Skidmore / Flickr</a>

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For months, President Biden and many prominent Democrats have warned that former President Donald Trump is a “threat to democracy.

In the wake of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, leaders on both sides of the aisle publicly called for unity and the tempering of extreme and hyperbolic language. But those calls have been better in theory, than practice.

Trump's Chance to Temper the Hyperbolic Rhetoric

Photo Credit: Gage <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/">Skidmore / Flickr</a>

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A new ranked choice voting poll shows that if Democrats were to replace President Joe Biden on the party’s presidential ticket, Vi

A new ranked choice voting poll shows that if Democrats were to replace President Joe Biden on the party’s presidential ticket, Vice President Kamala Harris is the strong favorite. However, the numbers show she does not poll as well as Biden against former President Donald Trump.

Ranked Choice Poll: VP Harris Is the Favorite to Replace Biden

Following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, leaders of both major political parties have called for unity and for a change to the venomous rhetoric in US politics.&nbsp;

<

Following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, leaders of both major political parties have called for unity and for a change to the venomous rhetoric in US politics. 

Disagree Better: Group of Governors Have Worked to Cool Down the Political Rhetoric

Editor's Note: The following debate on partisanship in SCOTUS&nbsp;<a href="https://dividedwefall.org/exploring-supreme-court-partisanship/">originally published</a> on Divided We Fall. It includes perspectives from George State University law professor Eric Segall and LaGrange College Politi

The Supreme Court of the United States is a unique, hybrid political-legal institution. It is staffed by life-tenured judges who interpret a centuries-old document replete with imprecise text that the justices must apply to an ever-changing society.

Does Partisanship Have Too Much Influence on SCOTUS?

The Idaho secretary of state announced this week that Idahoans for Open Primaries turned in enough signatures for its ballot initiative to end the state's closed primary system.

The coalition of reformers, which includes&nbsp;Reclaim Idaho, Mormon Women for Ethical Government, Veterans

The Idaho secretary of state announced this week that Idahoans for Open Primaries turned in enough signatures for its ballot initiative to end the state's closed primary system.

Idaho Top 4 Initiative with Ranked Choice Voting Certified for November Ballot

Editor's Note: The following op-ed from author Dan Sally <a href="https://middleweightpolitics.substack.com/p/democrats-have-replaced-an-unpopular">originally published</a> on his website and has been republished on IVN with permission from the author. Photo Source: <a href="https://www.flick

The 90-minute faceplant that was Joe Biden’s performance in the CNN presidential debate did little to dispel notions that he might be too old to serve another term as president. Footage of Jill Biden escorting him down the two steps of the debate stage didn’t help either.

Democrats Have Replaced an Unpopular Incumbent Before; It Didn't Work Out

The Richmond City Council unanimously approved a ballot measure for November in a 5-0 vote that authorizes the use of ranked choice voting (RCV) for mayor and city council elections.&nbsp;

If approved by voters, the <a href="https://contracosta.news/2024/07/08/richmond-agrees-to-ranked-

The Richmond City Council unanimously approved a ballot measure for November in a 5-0 vote that authorizes the use of ranked choice voting (RCV) for mayor and city council elections. 

Losing the White House: The Cost of Neglecting the Youth Vote

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