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Nineteen years have passed since Angus King was elected Governor of Maine as an independent, sixteen since wrestler Jesse Ventura “shocked the world” by beating two well-funded rivals in Minnesota, and four since Lincoln Chafee vied for Rhode Island’s highest office. While history is scattered with such examples of successful independent candidacies, it is no secret that the Republicans and Democrats have a strangle hold over the political process; those outside the duopoly rarely have their voi

Numerous polls have revealed that there is widespread ignorance when it comes to politics. In 2012, a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that less than half of those surveyed knew where the upcoming primary would be held, and only 53 percent knew that former presidential candidate Mitt Romney served as the governor of Massachusetts. This past summer, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey revealed that 44 percent of the participants did not realize "Obamacare" was still law, and about

The transformations that candidates go through can be especially interesting in my home state, the Democratic stronghold of Massachusetts. Ever since Massachusetts was the only state won by George McGovern in 1972, it has widely been considered a bastion of liberalism. Democratic candidates from the state such as Michael Dukakis, John Kerry, and Elizabeth Warren, however, must work hard to move away from this stigma when entering national politics. Republicans like Mitt Romney and Scott Brown

The Black Friday phenomenon that unofficially marks the beginning of the holiday shopping season began in the 1930's. Today, it has become a widespread tradition in America to get the best deals on products right after your stuffing of turkey. Here are 7 Black Friday facts that highlight the growth of this consumer holiday: 1. Money Made on Black Friday In 2012, a total of $59.1 billion was spent over the Black Friday weekend. Average consumer spending was at $423 per shopper. 2. Growth of

As many are now growing very skeptical of the new health care law, and as its critics are now louder than ever, the Obama administration is moving fast and furiously to fix the Affordable Care Act. "Obamacare" critics are quick to cry "disaster," but the law's advocates are insisting that people give it more time. So what can we expect to get out of this new law? To get a good idea it would seem reasonable to look at the Massachusetts health care reform law as it was the model for the nationa

As we move into the ninth month of this campaign, there is an increasing amount of news about the large and growing numbers of independent voters. It should come as no surprise, given that the headlines have been dominated by the ongoing partisan battles in Washington, D.C. There are independents running in the many 2014 elections, but are the latest partisan failures enough to turn these races in favor of independents? Put differently, is voter dissatisfaction enough to make people change the

There is a lot of money in politics, from local, to state, to federal elections. But some groups give a lot more to candidates and committees than others. Data was collected from the Center for Responsive Politics on OpenSecrets.org. There is a wealth -- pun intended -- of information in several categories to parse, including donations by Industry, Lobbying, PACs, Organizations, and 527s. 25. American Crystal Sugar American Crystal Sugar has donated $727,750 in the 2013-2014 election cycle, b

Jeffrey McCormick is the latest candidate to enter the 2014 gubernatorial election in Massachusetts. He is best known as the founder of Saturn Partners, a venture capitalist firm established in 1994 to finance early-state growth companies. McCormick is the second independent candidate to enter the race along with Evan Falchuk, the candidate for the newly founded United Independent Party. He is also not the only venture capitalist in the race as Charlie Baker, the only Republican in the race so

"Power corrupts, and the prospect of losing power corrupts absolutely." - John P. Roche Next November, Americans will elect representatives to the 114th Congress. As of October 20, the current Congress has an average 9.2 percent approval rating and 84.2 percent disapproval rating. Before the Congress-led shutdown, 2014 election projections showed that of the 435 seats up for election, only 35 seats will have a competitive election. On average, there is one House member for every 700,000 citize

Political scientists and party pollsters run with a common narrative: Independent voters are a myth. "We think of them as closet partisans who act in almost indistinguishable ways to those who identify as partisans," Brendan Nyhan, a political scientist at Dartmouth explains in a recent National Journal article. There is a group of independent voters, however, that defy this reasoning. Here are the top 30 reasons why, despite the partisan narrative, independent voters are not a myth: 1. Forty