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It is still unlikely that Libertarian Chad Grimm will become Illinois' 42nd governor, but as the only other choice on the ballot, his candidacy may soon take on a new phase. Republican Party nominee Bruce Rauner has long been considered suspect among the state's pro-life activists. In one instance, the newly-minted general election nominee skipped an Illinois Right-to-Life dinner and instead attended a pro-choice event for the ACLU. That suspicion increased over the weekend when Rauner's wife

As Illinois Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner receives unpleasant polling news, his state party may also face a federal investigation.A few weeks ago, the Illinois Libertarian Party (LP) qualified for statewide ballot access, but on Friday, Illinois LP candidate for attorney general, Ben Koyl, formally filed a complaint with the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Justice Department. The complaint surrounds whether the Illinois Republican Party utilized intimidation tactics against

One of the fundamental laws of psephology (the study of elections) is Duverger’s Law. This “law” affirms that in single-member districts, where the winner is whoever wins the most votes (plurality voting), the system will produce two major parties. The presence of third parties naturally encourages strategic voting, in which a voter will not choose his or her favorite candidate in order to avoid a “worse” outcome, such as the victory of his or her least preferred candidate. Though this law has

Recently, the Illinois State Board of Elections issued important rulings concerning third-party ballot access and electoral reform in the November elections. For Illinois, a state already synonymous with political corruption, the decisions represent setbacks for both the option of additional choices on the ballot and a means for limiting legislators' terms.The Illinois Libertarian Party survived and will appear on the ballot, but the Constitution Party, Green Party, and the term limit initiati

The shooting death of an unarmed black civilian by a white police officer this month has made Ferguson, Mo., a flashpoint for some of the most divisive issues in America today. Reports show that Michael Brown, 18, died after Ferguson Officer Darren Wilson responded to an emergency call. Accounts about what happened vary, but an autopsy showed that Wilson reportedly discharged his weapon six times. Since then, Ferguson has seen protests, riots, looting, curfews, and even more death. The crisis

1. Ralph Nader criticizes the use of "spoiler" to describe independent and third-party candidates and how the major parties treat these candidates to maintain their dominance in elections. "Remember that the words "political parties," "corporation" and "company" are not even mentioned in our Constitution, raising the central question of why they are ruling "we the people" today." While Nader does not raise the issue, the above quote should also be considered when we talk about all aspects of t

There are three methods of proportional representation advocates most commonly present: cumulative voting, limited voting, and ranked-choice voting. Each has been used in the United States, mainly in local and county elections, with decent success. The first two systems only simulate proportional voting while ranked-choice can fully incorporate proportional voting. Cumulative voting is a system used in multi-seat elections where the voter is given a number of ballots equal to the number of sea

As IVN contributor AJ Signieri described in June, third parties in Illinois struggle to secure a place on the state’s general election ballots. If a party’s nominee for governor does not cross the 5 percent threshold, the party is considered a “new party” and must collect at least 25,000 signatures to appear on the next ballot. “Established parties” that cross this threshold -- the Democratic and Republican parties -- only need to collect 5,000 signatures. This year, three minor parties collect

Despite consistently low approval ratings of Congress, candidates outside the Democratic and Republican parties have faced an uphill battle gaining enough exposure and credibility to get elected. Since 1877 (the end of Reconstruction), there have been 111 third party or independent candidates elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Since 1949 (the Modern Era), there have only been six. How many independents are sitting in the House today? Zero. That’s right, zero. All 432 current represe

1. Illinois Times runs op-ed saying open primaries and redistricting reform would help ease partisan gridlock in Washington. "Open primaries would help moderate the nation’s politics, as would bipartisan redistricting commissions capable of doing away with gerrymandered districts. Increasing voter participation and improving the integrity of our elections would also help. " The only problem is we are not defining what "moderate the nation's politics" actually means, and we have to distinguish