> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://ivn.us/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # NY Shows What CA Might Look Like Without Top-Two - URL: https://ivn.us/ny-shows-what-ca-might-look-like-without-top-two/ - Published: 2026-06-24T18:10:41.000Z - Updated: 2026-06-24T18:10:41.000Z - Description: Plus: D.C. finally opens its primaries - Author: IVN Editorial Board - Tags: Weekly Newsletter Mayor Zohran Mamdani's slate swept Tuesday night in New York. In a closed primary state this blue, **the** **election is over**. November's general election is a formality. Three contested House races. Two unseated incumbents. The deciding factor was a small, motivated bloc of activist voters, turned out by volunteers, in low-turnout races where **most of the electorate did not or could not participate**. California's nonpartisan Top-Two was designed to give every voter a chance to participate in a meaningful primary and general election. Now, party operatives want to go back to a system like New York. As [Steve Peace argues this week](https://ivn.us/2026/06/24/commentary/bill-cavala-would-have-laughed-at-californias-latest-closed-primary-scheme/), even Bill Cavala knew better than to disenfranchise 6.9 million voters. Good news from D.C. The [Council voted to fund semi-open primaries](https://ivn.us/2026/06/23/open-primaries/independent-voters-win-dc-council-votes-to-fund-semi-open-primaries/), giving 85,000 independent voters access to the taxpayer-funded elections that decide who governs them. The architect of that reform, Lisa Rice, [joined us on the Independent Voter Podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg2o4mTf1eY&ref=ivn.us) this week. Worth a listen. Check out more stories that go outside the two-sided narrative below. ### *FEATURED ▶▶▶* ## The Plan to Strip 6.9 Million Californians of Voting Rights Could Haunt Politicians [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/2026/06/Bill-Cavala-1.png)](https://ivn.us/2026/06/24/commentary/bill-cavala-would-have-laughed-at-californias-latest-closed-primary-scheme/) Even one of the most partisan operatives in California history, the late Bill Cavala, understood why open primaries matter. A legendary Democratic strategist who spent four decades inside the old closed-primary system - senior aide to Willie Brown, architect behind a generation of Assembly Speakers - Cavala still became a key backer of Proposition 14. Now, there is a contingent of political operatives attempting to force California back to closed primaries. Undoing Top Two, Steve Peace argues, would tell 6.9 million independents they can't vote in taxpayer-funded primaries unless they join a club they've already chosen to leave. [READ FULL ARTICLE](https://ivn.us/2026/06/24/commentary/bill-cavala-would-have-laughed-at-californias-latest-closed-primary-scheme/) ### *POPULAR ON IVN ▶▶▶* [BREAKING: Independent Voters Win! DC Council Votes to Fund Semi-Open Primaries ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/23/open-primaries/independent-voters-win-dc-council-votes-to-fund-semi-open-primaries/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/02/dJY12ln-_400x400.jpg) Shawn Griffiths [ ![DC Council funds open primaries](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/washington-dc-vfunds-open-primaries--1.jpg) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/23/open-primaries/independent-voters-win-dc-council-votes-to-fund-semi-open-primaries/) [The DC Council Has One More Chance to Let Independents Vote. Now is the Time to Get it Done! ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/election-reform/the-dc-council-has-one-more-chance-to-let-independents-vote-now-is-the-time-to-get-it-done/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/06/Lisa-Rice-1.jpeg) Lisa D.T. Rice [ ![DC City Hall open primaries](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/DC-City-Hall-Open-Primaries-Elections-Initiative83.jpg) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/election-reform/the-dc-council-has-one-more-chance-to-let-independents-vote-now-is-the-time-to-get-it-done/) [3 States Voted Tuesday. More Than 5 Million Independents Were Told to Stay Out. ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/23/election-reform/3-states-voted-tuesday-more-than-5-million-independents-were-told-to-stay-out/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/03/ivp_logo-02.png) IVN Editorial Board [ ![Closed primaries New York Maryland Utah](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/closed-primaries-independent-voters-new-york-maryland-utah-2026.png) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/23/election-reform/3-states-voted-tuesday-more-than-5-million-independents-were-told-to-stay-out/) [Poll Finds that a Majority of New York Democrats Don't Really Want to be Democrats ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/18/ivp-poll/poll-finds-that-a-majority-of-new-york-democrats-dont-really-want-to-be-democrats/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/02/dJY12ln-_400x400.jpg) Shawn Griffiths [ ![New York voters NYC Democrats](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/new-york-voters-NYC-democrats.jpg) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/18/ivp-poll/poll-finds-that-a-majority-of-new-york-democrats-dont-really-want-to-be-democrats/) [In New York, Latino Democrats Aren't Even Democrats ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/election-reform/in-new-york-latino-democrats-arent-even-democrats/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/06/Mike-Madrid.jpg) Mike Madrid [ ![New York Latino voters Democratic Party](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/new-york-latino-voters-democratic-party-elections.jpg) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/election-reform/in-new-york-latino-democrats-arent-even-democrats/) [No Party. No Big Money. No Problem: How an Independent Mayor Beat the Machine in Ridgecrest ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/22/campaigns/no-party-no-big-money-no-problem-how-an-independent-mayor-beat-the-machine-in-ridgecrest/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/05/matt-shinners.png) Matt Shinners [ ![Travis Endicott Ridgecrest](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/travis-endicott.png) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/22/campaigns/no-party-no-big-money-no-problem-how-an-independent-mayor-beat-the-machine-in-ridgecrest/) [47% Independent: The Two-Party System Has Lost the Country It Claims to Represent ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/primary-buzz/47-independent-the-two-party-system-has-lost-the-country-it-claims-to-represent/) By ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w30/2026/06/1517747530842.jpg) Jeremy Gruber [ ![Independent voter](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/size/w320/2026/06/independent-voter.jpg) ](https://ivn.us/2026/06/19/primary-buzz/47-independent-the-two-party-system-has-lost-the-country-it-claims-to-represent/) ### *NEW EPISODE ▶▶▶* ## Independent Voter Podcast Lisa D.T. Rice, the driving force behind DC's Initiative 83 to permit ranked choice voting and open primaries, joins the show to explain how a missing ballot turned her into one of the most relentless reformers in the country. She breaks down why closed primaries are really a voting-rights problem, how she took on two fights at once - **open primaries and ranked choice voting** \- in the heart of a 95% one-party city. [WATCH NOW](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg1trJf7iYQ&ref=ivn.us) ### *OPINION CLIP ▶▶▶* ## Here's Why Spencer Pratt REALLY Lost in LA: Steyer-Funded Ballot Harvesting [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/2026/06/Pratt_LA_Clip.png)](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZsiqBeDXQf/?ref=ivn.us) Did Democrats cheat to push Nithya Raman past Spencer Pratt in the LA mayor's race? No, says IVN's Cara McCormick - **what happened was legal**, and in her words "better than cheating." Watch the full clip for more: [WATCH NOW ON INSTAGRAM](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DZnlke2j8ZX/?ref=ivn.us) ## NEW: Join the Conversation Now, when you [sign-up for an account on IVN](https://ivn.us/#/portal/signup), you can help frame, change, and inform the discussion. In fact, you can [submit your own news stories](https://ivn.us/publish/), as long as you follow the simple [IVN Etiquette](https://ivn.us/etiquette/). [SIGN UP NOW](https://ivn.us/#/portal/signup) ### *ANNOUNCEMENT ▶▶▶* ## IVN Joins Forces with Latino News Network & The Fulcrum to Expand Voter-First Journalism [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/2026/06/IVN_Fulcrum_LNN_Announcement-1.png)](https://ivn.us/independent-voter-news-joins-forces-with-latino-news-network-and-the-fulcrum-to-expand-voter-first-journalism/) Independent Voter News (IVN) has entered into a collaborative partnership with the Latino News Network (LNN) and The Fulcrum, bringing together three outlets whose editorial missions converge on a shared conviction: that American democracy is best served by journalism that reaches the people most often left out of the conversation. [LEARN MORE ON IVN](https://ivn.us/independent-voter-news-joins-forces-with-latino-news-network-and-the-fulcrum-to-expand-voter-first-journalism/) [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dc/be/dcbe1ac4-146f-43be-92a6-ea84728d86a6/content/images/2026/05/omp-320x50-1.gif)](https://openmyprimary.org/?ref=ivn.us)