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A group supporting nonpartisan open primaries in Florida recently released a new ad urging voters to vote "Yes" on Amendment 3 in November. Amendment 3 would replace the state's closed partisan primary system with a nonpartisan top-two primary similar to the statewide primary systems in California and Washington. "There are 3 and a half million voters in Florida like me who don't belong to a political party, and we can't vote in the primaries," says one Florida voter in the video. "Ninety perce

Alaskans have an opportunity to level the playing field in elections, give voters more choice, and end secret money in politics with one vote in November. All they have to do is vote “Yes” on Ballot Measure 2. Ballot Measure 2 is a comprehensive better government measure that combines a nonpartisan primary system with ranked choice voting in the general election, and requires stronger finance disclosure rules to end the practice of dark money spending by special interest groups. The campai

The exact opposite of what the Framers originally intended has now been made the Law of the Land. John Jay wrote in Federalist 64 that the virtue of the Electoral College is that it can dampen “the activity of party zeal.” Hamilton, in Federalist 68, envisioned Electors as sophisticated people, who could be the free thinking representatives of the common folks in the President/VP election process. Leading Framers, such as Washington and Madison, feared and abhorred “factions,” or parties. They

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in The Fulcrum, and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Monday that states may require presidential electors to cast their ballots for the candidate chosen by popular vote. The decision, written by Justice Elena Kagan, appears to end the quixotic pursuit of a legal endorsement for "faithless electors" — Electoral College delegates who want to follow their own conscience instead o

2020 is already a year to remember – a world-wide pandemic, militant Black-led protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd by a white Minneapolis police officer, and a presidential election. It is fair to ask what the election has to do with the other two. Will it bring anything more than efforts by both major parties and their less than inspiring candidates to use these devastating events to their advantage? Those who call themselves reformers cannot ignore this question. At a minimum, we n

There is a good deal of mention of the Constitution on social media these days; frequently, in short, declarative sentences that express with certainty what the document means. Oftentimes these comments are directed at the Supreme Court, accusing a justice or justices of willfully violating the obligation to impartially interpret and administer the law. Although both liberals and conservatives have engaged in this sport, conservatives do it a lot more, in part because of a legal theory called “T

Most people know the story: Moments after the Constitutional Convention ended in 1787, Ben Franklin walked out of Independent Hall and was approached by a woman. The woman asked, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a monarchy or a republic?” Franklin replied, “A Republic, if you can keep it.” The account is quoted everywhere from the classroom to the Halls of Congress. The message is simple: A form of government that is responsive to the people can be easily lost if the people become complacent

As the fight continues across the country to expand safe and secure options for voters to participate in the 2020 elections, 5 nonpartisan organizations collaborated to put on a virtual rally to bolster the cause. March On announced “Vote Safe 2020 Live” on Monday, June 22, which the group calls a “virtual movement to protect the vote this November.” The event was hosted in collaboration with the National Vote at Home Institute, HeadCount, Future Coalition, and The Andrew Goodman Foundation.

First, on behalf of the NANR Board, I want to thank our members for making NANR's first Spotlight program on June 8 a big success, highlighting the important work our members are doing to ensure safe and secure elections in times of crises. We’ve elevated the reform conversation for legislators, journalists, and reform practitioners across the country, who now have a better understanding of what we are all about, and the reform solutions we bring to the table to ensure a better representative d

Most Americans believe the US is headed in the wrong direction, trust in the federal government is at dismal levels, and people are consumed by frustration, grief, and/or rage in uncertain and tumultuous times. As former Gehl Foods CEO and prominent political reform activist Katherine Gehl said recently, “Things are not alright with our country.” LISTEN NOW: How We End Division, Dysfunction, and Inaction in a Democracy in Crisis Yet, the public has long felt the US was headed in the wrong d