Breaking the Habit: A Mainstream Appetite to End Dysfunctional DC Politics

image
Published: 30 Jan, 2019
Updated: 15 Aug, 2022
1 min read

"There is such an appetite and an interest and a growing mainstream recognition that if we don't fix our system, we're going to get the same crappy results out of Washington." - John Opdycke, President of Open Primaries

In the first episode of Toppling the Duopoly, I discuss future primary and election reform with Open Primaries President John Opdycke and long-time activist and Open Primaries spokesperson Dr. Jessie Fields, and the impact it could have on the 2020 elections.

From the fringes to the mainstream, Opdycke, Dr. Fields, and I discuss how reform efforts have "grown by leaps and bounds" because of the hunger for broad systemic reform to transform government to be accountable to the people, first, not party bosses or special interests.

And as the crowded presidential field emerges, the drive for reform will become more visible as we face the same problems millions were exposed to in the 2016 election.

With a new year comes a new podcast, with one of the nation's most knowledgable experts on the broad nonpartisan reform movement and the key players who want to give voters a better, functional, and more accountable political system.

If you have any comments or feedback on the new podcast or the issues discussed in it, be sure to drop it in the comment section. We want to hear from you. Thanks for listening, and as always... stay independent!

Latest articles

US map divided in blue and red with a white ballot box on top.
Could Maine Be the First State to Exit the National Popular Vote Compact?
On May 20, the Maine House of Representatives voted 76–71 to withdraw the state from the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), reversing course just over a year after Maine became the 17th jurisdiction to join the agreement....
04 Jun, 2025
-
3 min read
New York City
Nine Democrats Face Off in NYC Mayoral Debate as Ranked Choice Voting, Cuomo Probe, and Independent Bid from Adams Reshape the Race
A crowded field of nine Democratic candidates will take the stage tonight, June 4, in the first official debate of the 2025 New York City mayoral primary. Held at NBC’s 30 Rock studios and co-sponsored by the city’s Campaign Finance Board, NBC 4 New York, Telemundo 47, and POLITICO New York, the debate comes at a pivotal moment in a race already shaped by political upheaval, criminal investigations, and the unique dynamics of ranked choice voting....
04 Jun, 2025
-
6 min read
Elderly woman sitting in wheelchair staring out window.
Three Reps Put Party Labels Aside to Strengthen U.S. Role in Global Fight Against Alzheimer’s
Two California members of Congress, Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA-06) and Young Kim (R-CA-40), introduced a bill Wednesday with Republican Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick aimed at bolstering the US's global role in the battle against Alzheimer’s disease. ...
04 Jun, 2025
-
3 min read