At the March 25 Democracy Network Exchange meeting, reform advocates confronting 2024 losses on ranked choice voting and other ballot measures pointed to a hard truth: insider language, weak grassroots investment, and abstract messaging are still undermining structural reform campaigns.
The No Labels Party in Arizona cannot change its name to the Arizona Independent Party. This is the decision from Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Gregory Como, who called it a “political bait-and-switch.”
In the fall of 2019, Scranton, Pennsylvania, was in crisis. Its mayor, Bill Courtright, had resigned and pleaded guilty to federal charges of bribery, extortion, and conspiracy.
Chad Peace, Cara McCormick, and Shawn Griffiths kick off this episode of the Independent Voter Podcast with a controversial story that put the California governor’s race in the national spotlight.
Impeachments. Wave elections. Gerrymandered maps. A stolen election that never was. Frustration with leadership. The reasons House members abandon their parties mid-term are as varied as the members themselves.
The media does not often cover the impact independent voters have in elections until after the primaries. However, in 2026, this growing segment of voters – who make up nearly half of the electorate – is harder to ignore in these critical early contests.
On March 9, 2026, US Rep. Kevin Kiley held a press conference and announced he was breaking up with the GOP. With that, Kiley became the only capital "I" Independent in the House
Riverside County sheriff and California gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco has bolstered his national name ID after he seized over 650,000 ballots cast in the 2025 special election for Proposition 50.
The city of Los Angeles will hold a primary election on June 2nd in which fourteen people are running for mayor, including a sitting councilmember, a sitting mayor, and a former reality television personality.
What happens when only a small percentage of voters actually decide elections? TSA delays and government shutdowns. This is the end result of a political system driven by closed primaries, low turnout, and strategic campaigning.
Dawn Addis, born July 12, 1972, is a former teacher and Morro Bay city councilmember who was first elected to the Assembly in 2022 and re-elected in 2024
Illinois conducted its 2026 primary elections Tuesday, and in some cases the winner advanced to November with around or less than 30% of the vote. In my congressional district, IL-7, State Representative La Shawn Ford won his primary with roughly 24% of the vote.
Shawn Griffiths
Cara Brown McCormick
Independent Voter Podcast
