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On July 14, congressional lawmakers introduced the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016, which would ensure that whenever a citizen interacts with the government, they are automatically registered to vote unless they choose to decline. The bill is being led by Representative Robert Brady (D-PA). While support at the congressional level has been primarily among Democrats, automatic registration is a bi-partisan reform at its very core. Five states have adopted automatic voter registration th

Support for Libertarian Gary Johnson continues to grow, according to the newest poll by NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist. The poll shows double-digit strength in both Virginia and Colorado. While Johnson has had an average national showing of 10 percent for several months (polling as high as 13 percent in one poll), the nature of a federal republic makes each state's results all that really matters. A double-digit showing in two hotly contested battleground states represents a huge impact on

The #NeverTrump movement is dead. Squashed, as it were, by a new party rule. A 77-21 vote in the RNC Rules committee Thursday effectively banned “conscience voting” for delegates to the Convention, ending the movement among delegates to vote for someone, anyone, other than Donald Trump. The movement was spearheaded by Colorado delegate Kendal Unruh and a variety of outside organizations, including Free The Delegates 2016 and Our Principles PAC. Unruh and company strove to encourage delegates t

A July 11 federal court case in Richmond, Virginia, comes in the midst of much debate over delegate rules, and has the potential to turn the tables on Trump at the GOP convention. Virginia RNC delegate Carroll Correll Jr., backed by the Citizens in Charge Foundation, sued Virginia Attorney General Mark Herrig and other state officials over delegate binding laws. Correll was successful in overturning rules that required delegates to vote winner-take-all, rather than proportionally. He hopes the

An independent running in Illinois' 13th congressional district could garner substantial support in November. However, the candidate's Democratic opponent is now trying to keep him off the ballot. David Gill is a Bloomington physician and ran for Congress four times as a Democrat. This year, however, he decided to run as an independent. Gill criticizes both parties as controlled by "corporate interests" in a manner resembling Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Now, members of hi

In late June, the Supreme Court voted unanimously to vacate the conviction of former Virginia Governor Robert McDonnell, who was found guilty by a jury in 2014 on 11 corruption-related charges. The court has sent the case to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to re-try the case according to the Supreme Court's interpretation of the federal bribery statute. The case revolves around the relationship between a Virginia businessman, Jonnie R. Wi

third par·ty noun: a person or group besides the two primarily involved in a situation, especially a dispute. Almost since the beginning of the American Republic, voters have had a third choice. A party that wasn’t ruled by the power classes, the Democrats and Republicans. A party that truly felt of the people, by the people, and for the people. In today’s rough-and-tumble political climate, it can be argued that never before has the country needed a third choice for president more desperately

To date, seventeen Democratic State Conventions, one legislative district convention, and one county convention have voted to either abolish or reform superdelegates. Following frustration voiced by Bernie Sanders and his supporters, Maine was the first state to pass a resolution at their convention in early May, followed closely by Alaska.Delegates Awarded to Democratic Candidates | InsideGov Since then, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, We

A recent poll shows that presumptive nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have record-high unfavorability ratings: 55 percent and 70 percent, respectively. Yet despite their unpopularity, the general electorate may not be exposed to third party candidates as an alternative. This is largely a result of the rules governing who is included in the presidential debates. According to guidelines set by the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), a candidate must poll at 15 percent to be invited

With many voters disappointed with their choices for president in the presumptive nominees of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, many are considering alternative candidates. Thus far, the greatest beneficiary of this disappointment has been Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson, who is consistently polling in double digits in three-way contests with Clinton and Trump. Johnson's growing popularity is alarming many conservatives, who fear that Johnson could play the role of "spoiler" by siphoni