Search query: virginia

Bernie Sanders took time out of his busy schedule of trying to bring a single-payer healthcare bill to the Senate to endorse a candidate for governor of Virginia. Earlier this week, Sanders endorsed former congressman Tom Perriello in the governor’s race. https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/849235091939364865 The senator tweeted or retweeted about Perriello four times in the past three days, and he’s joining Perriello on the campaign trail. Sanders touts Perriello’s support for a $15 mini

The city commission of Fargo, North Dakota is currently considering a proposal that would dump the choose-one voting method used in a majority of cities and states across the U.S. and adopt approval voting for city elections. Fargo has an opportunity to make history as the first jurisdiction in the nation to use approval voting. Here is a quick explanation of how approval voting works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=db6Syys2fmE Video Credit: The Center for Election Science "People are seein

In round one yesterday of March Madness, the premier spectacle of American sports, 32 teams went to the free throw line 634 times and converted 438 of their charitable gifts (you are not reading this anywhere else). Sixty-nine percent ain't that good; but it ain't the bad, either. But you are reading this because winning teams from the free throw line outshot their opponents in 12 of yesterday's 16 games. In several games the difference was critical to the game's denouement. In the Princeton

At no time in history has the issue of “open v. closed primaries” been so prominent in the national discussion as it is today. This is, in large part, because Bernie Sanders made it a plank of his presidential campaign. But it is also a consequence of an important reality: independent voters are the fastest growing segment of the electorate, by far. Yet, the first and highly important stage of our election process most often serves the exclusive benefit of the voters who choose to join one of t

A surprising new bipartisan bill surfaced this week, brought forth by a bipartisan team of lawmakers, giving pot supporters a new reason to light up. Rep. Thomas Garrett (R-Va.) introduced H.R. 1227, the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017. The bill would allow states to fully dictate the way they handle both medical and recreational marijuana policy without risk of intervention by the federal government. Garrett is joined by U.S. Reps Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), Scott Taylor (R-Va.

On Wednesday, March 1, a nonpartisan, top-two bill proposed by Illinois state State Rep. Sara Jimenez (R) was assigned to Election and Campaign Finance Committee. The bill, HB3655, was originally introduced on February 10, and would make Illinois the third state to adopt a top-two primary system for statewide elections. IVN reported in January on another bill, HB0285, introduced by state Rep. Mike Fortner (R) that would reform state primary elections the same way. Fortner's bill was also assign

President Donald Trump’s first weeks as president seem to be centered around one strategy: Prove to the American people that he’s a man of his word and that unlike most politicians, he will actually keep his campaign promises. Despite the rocky start, he has mostly been successful in this endeavor. Travel ban? Executive order signed. Border wall? In the works. Restrictions on lobbying? Done. Trump has shown voters he is indeed a man of his word with the stroke of a pen. In fact, according to Ga

On Monday, a bipartisan group of Virginia Senators voted against a bill on the floor to effectively close the state’s primary elections. It was the second time in less than 12 months that an effort to close Virginia’s primaries had made it to the floor. The 29 to 11 vote on Monday, however, was much broader than the 21 to 19 defeat in last year’s legislature that largely broke along party lines, and was only successful when two Republicans joined a unified Democratic opposition. The difference

A bill designed to close Virginia's primary elections failed Monday. SB821 sponsored by Del. John Cosgrove (R-Chesapeake) was voted down in the Senate with 11 voting in favor and 29 opposed. SB821 would have taken away the right of all voters to participate in Virginia's taxpayer funded primary leaving the Democratic and Republican parties to decide who would be able to participate. SB821 is the latest in an ongoing series of attempts to close primary elections across the country. Efforts to und

Virginia has a long history of open and inclusive primary elections. But that may be about to change. State legislators John A. Cosgrove, Jr. (R-Chesapeake) and Mark D. Obenshain (R-Rockingham) are pushing complimentary bills that would close Virginia's taxpayer-funded primary election to voters who choose not to join a major political party. Most simply, in an open primary, every voter can participate. In a closed primary, only members of a major political party can participate. Open primaries