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.

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.

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.

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. 

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 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. 

In a system that was designed to perpetuate a zero-sum contest between two sides, the stakes get higher each election cycle to convince people they have to cast their ballot a certain way “or else.”

In 2022, Alaska voters used a new election system that changed the way state voters thought about elections.

It goes without saying that the District of Columbia is a one-party town. Out of the 13 seats that compose the DC City Council, 11 are held by Democrats, and the other two are held by officials registered as independent.

Imagine this: A general election with no negative campaigning and four or five viable candidates (regardless of party affiliation) competing based on their own personal ideas and actions — not simply their level of obstruction or how well they demonize their opponents.

A DC campaign has collected more than 40,000 signatures to put an initiative on the city’s ballot that would open primary elections to independent voters and implement ranked choice voting in all District elections.

Last week, Virginia’s GOP held primaries for the upcoming House elections in November. As of today, the results for the state’s 5th congressional district are still too close to call.

Once again, the US finds itself having a familiar discussion. Some people will use the term “democracy” to refer to the US, and then there will inevitably be some who respond with, “We’re not a democracy; we’re a republic.”

Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont formed a task force this month to come up with a comprehensive legislative proposal by the end of the year that would enable state municipalities and parties to use ranked choice voting (RCV).

A recent poll shows that 55% of South Dakota voters support Amendment H, which if approved in November will implement a nonpartisan, top-two primary in the state similar to systems used in California and Washington.

Arizona is ground zero for a novel approach to voting reform that is not getting any attention from the national press, but could have tremendous implications for future elections and provide a fairer process for all voters -- regardless of their political affiliation. 

It goes without saying that most voters are dissatisfied with the state of US politics. Hyper-polarization and division are at their worst levels in modern history and nothing is getting done to actually help the American people.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed an elections bill Thursday that will make it harder for voters to create an electoral system that offers more choice to voters, regardless of their political affiliation.

The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors may consider implementing ranked choice voting (RCV) for county elections in August. If it moves forward with the change, Santa Clara would be the 9th jurisdiction to approve its use – and would be the first to approve it for county elections.

A bill is currently on Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ desk that if signed into law would place barriers on the will of the people being carried out should they approve nonpartisan primaries and a ranked voting method in November. 

For anyone who thinks party rules are not put above state law or the will of voters -- look no further than Texas. 

Montana may be on the verge of joining a growing movement across the country to give voters a fairer elections process that offers more choice and greater accountability. 

The late Peter Ackerman, an expert in nonviolent civil resistance and a driving force behind reform efforts like Maine’s “More Voice” initiatives, said that even the best ideas are accepted in stages:

A proposed amendment to the South Dakota Constitution to require a nonpartisan primary system in which all voters and candidates participate on a single ballot has been certified for the November ballot.

Nearly three-quarters of Oakland voters (74%) approved an initiative in 2022 that took a comprehensive approach to campaign finance solutions in the city. However, one of its historic changes is in need of funding if it is going to be implemented by 2026; namely, its "democracy dollars" public finance system.

A recent poll conducted by Competitive Edge research with funding by More Choice San Diego found that 62% of voters in Chula Vista -- if given the opportunity -- would support a measure that would advance five candidates to a general election that uses ranked ballots.

Imagine it’s election night 2024. A few close swing states will decide the presidency – and test the health of our democracy. In that scenario, we can be certain of two facts: Neither Joe Biden nor Donald Trump will win a majority of the vote, and votes for independent and third-party candidates will dwarf the final margin.

One week after the Idahoans for Open Primaries coalition submitted roughly 30,000 more signatures than they needed to get a nonpartisan top-four primary system on the ballot, South Dakota Open Primaries met the required number of signatures in their own state to put a top-two system before voters.

David Daley, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan better elections group FairVote, released a statement Wednesday on Robert F Kennedy Jr's "no spoiler pledge," calling it "weird" and "unproven."

An initiative that would ensure equal voting rights for 270,000 independent voters in Idaho is all but certain to qualify for the November ballot. The Idahoans for Open Primaries coalition exceeded 90,000 signatures for its "Final Four" elections initiative days before the May 1 deadline.

Earlier this month, No Labels officially ended its plans to field a bipartisan “Unity Ticket” in the 2024 presidential election. While most campaigns end due to a lack of voter support or funding, No Labels’s campaign suffered the unique problem of lacking a candidate.

In a recent episode of The Purple Principle, a podcast that examines democracy and polarization from a nonpartisan lens, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson said that while he was skeptical of ranked choice voting at first, he now sees it as a meaningful solution to elect candidates with the broadest appeal.

Election reformers have looked to Maine for several years now as a pioneer in adopting policy solutions that put voters first in elections. Maine voters have taken it upon themselves to enact better elections – and have won major victories.

An initiative that would open the taxpayer-funded electoral process in Idaho to all voters has more than 84,000 signatures, according to the group spearheading the initiative, Idahoans for Open Primaries. 

If there is one day out of the year that many Americans collectively dread it is April 15 -- Tax Day. But for millions of US voters, it is also a reminder that while they help foot the bill for elections, they are denied the right to an equal vote in them.

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has said no to a bill that would clarify how ranked choice voting (RCV) is supposed to work in local elections -- which is odd considering the only reason Youngkin is governor is because of a RCV nomination process at the 2021 Virginia GOP convention. 

Nebraska is one of only two states that has a system that awards its Electoral College votes based on the popular vote in each of its congressional districts. However, there is a contingent of state lawmakers who want to change this with the support of former President Donald Trump.

There is a resolution in the Missouri Legislature that if approved by voters would ban the use of ranked choice voting (RCV). However, RCV isn't the sole subject. There is another provision meant to trick voters into supporting it. 

Efforts to reform Pennsylvania's closed partisan primary system continue with groups like Ballot PA urging state lawmakers to give independent voters equal voting rights in the state's taxpayer-funded elections process.

On April 1, 2014, IVN was the first to cover a campaign that warned California independent voters not to be fooled when they registered to vote. But today, hundreds of thousands of voters are still registered with the American Independent Party by mistake.

The lawsuit was filed by the DC Democratic Party in August not long after the DC Board of Elections unanimously approved the reform initiative, now known as Initiative 83, to appear on the 2024 ballot. 

Idaho isn't a state that gets much attention when people talk about politics in the US. However, this could change in 2024 if Idahoans for Open Primaries and their allies are successful with their proposed initiative.

The AP headline reads, "Ohio primary: Open seat on state supreme court could flip partisan control." This immediately should raise a red flag for voters, and not because of who may benefit but over a question too often ignored.

Former presidential candidate and co-founder of the Forward Party Andrew Yang sat down with Nirvana co-founder Krist Novoselic, who went from changing the status quo in music to bringing that independent spirit to the political arena and the fight for better elections.

Unfortunately, the upcoming 2024 South Dakota primary election promises more of the same for our state.

Mounting research continues to show the real truth behind independent voter suppression in several states across the US.

A new study analyzing all single-winner ranked choice voting (RCV) elections since 2004 reveals a significant increase in meaningful votes and representation in elections under RCV.

Open Primaries, in partnership with Unite America, announced the launch of LetUsVote Wednesday, a nationwide initiative that aims to mobilize and empower independent voters, who make up the largest voting bloc in the US but are treated like second-class voters.

Republican South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster does not support calls from within his party to close primary elections to registered party members only. He has long pushed back against claims that non-party members will infiltrate the primaries to manipulate outcomes.

A bill that would strip Virginia governors of their ability to handpick a party-loyal elections commissioner was approved with a unanimous vote in the state's House but has run into trouble in the state Senate.

In 2010, California voters took the first step in empowering every California voter by abolishing party-controlled closed partisan primaries in favor of open nonpartisan primaries that advance the top two vote-getters to the November election. 

As the US kicks off the 2024 presidential election cycle, more than 23.5 million registered independent voters find themselves sidelined by closed presidential primaries in 22 states, a recent report from the Unite America Institute reveals.

Louisiana, voters witnessed their legislature not only ignore their opinions on something as important as voter rights -- but lawmakers also spit in their faces.