Campaigns

California’s 31st Assembly District runs through the agricultural heart of the San Joaquin Valley, where the land is lined with orchards, vineyards, and produce fields that feed the state and the nation. It covers portions of Fresno County, including the cities of Parlier, Selma, Orange Cove, Fowler, and Sanger, as well as parts of Fresno and Clovis....

The coastline that defines California’s mythology begins here. From Malibu’s winding cliffs to the leafy streets of Brentwood and Bel Air, through Topanga Canyon and into the valleys of Calabasas, Agoura Hills, and Thousand Oaks, the 42nd Assembly District holds some of the most photographed, most coveted, and most challenged terrain in the state. ...

A new Emerson College poll of California’s 2026 governor’s race confirms what many election observers have suspected. California is entering a high stakes primary season with no clear front runners, a crowded field, and an election system where the outcome often depends less on voter preference and more on mathematical luck....

As Congress and state legislatures debate how to safeguard veterans’ disability benefits, a fast-growing industry of for-profit claims consultants is pouring millions of dollars into lobbying and legal fights to preserve a business model that has become both enormously profitable and fiercely controversial....

A new poll from the Independent Center highlights a clear message from the public: Americans are fed up with the current political leadership, and they’re ready for change....

Ahead of the November 4 special election in California, it was easy to predict the success of a legislative gerrymander under Prop 50. When the measure was projected to be victorious the second polls closed, it didn’t surprise anyone....

Zohran Mamdani’s name appeared twice on the New York City mayoral ballot?! No voter ID?! Eric Adams appeared on the ballot despite dropping out?! Andrew Cuomo’s name appeared last?! An election rigged against Cuomo?!...

Across the country, both parties are weighing whether to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Texas, California, Missouri, North Carolina, Utah, Indiana, Colorado, Illinois, and Virginia are all in various stages of the action. Here are five politicians who have declined to support redistricting efforts promoted by their own parties....

The special election for California Prop 50 wraps up November 4 and recent polling shows the odds strongly favor its passage. The measure suspends the state’s independent congressional map for a legislative gerrymander that Princeton grades as one of the worst in the nation....

The latest Independent Voter Podcast episode takes listeners through the messy intersections of politics, reform, and public perception. Chad and Cara open with the irony of partisan outrage over trivial issues like a White House ballroom while overlooking the deeper dysfunctions in our democracy. From California to Maine, they unpack how the very words on a ballot can tilt entire elections and how both major parties manipulate language and process to maintain power....