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Voters are frustrated with the state of US politics. They want a fairer system that empowers them to elect representatives who will put their interests above those of private political parties and special interests. It is becoming much more apparent to citizens that long-term solutions to the nation’s biggest problems can’t be found until we fix how voters elect public officials. The good news is that there is a growing coalition of reformers who understand the most critical problems that keep

This is an independent opinion. Have one of your own? Email it to hoa@ivn.us This year has been defined by uncertainty — in homes, businesses, schools, and communities across the state. But one constant, keeping our economy and society afloat, has clearly emerged: technology. As lawmakers get back to work after a heated campaign cycle, they should recognize the value of technology platforms at the community level, embrace the role they will no doubt continue to play in our economic recovery, an

Editor's Note: This piece originally appeared on AllSides, and has been republished on IVN with permission from the author. ‍ It is deeply frustrating for many Democrats that Dianne Feinstein and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are members of the same political party. Most Republicans are equally unhappy that they are forced to count both Mitt Romney and Donald Trump, Jr. within their ranks. Such is life in a two-party system, where both sides must deal with internal tensions in order to win election

If $800 million wasn’t a sufficiently appetizing carrot to get his audience to buy more motels, Gov. Gavin Newsom could dangle a more spiritual enticement: less time burning in the afterlife. At the California State Association of Counties’ annual conference in mid-November, more than 200 county supervisors and other officials awaited answers via Zoom for how the governor was planning to ward off all manners of local government armageddon — pestilence, wildfires, budget deficits. When asked ab

This is an independent commentary. Want to write one of your own? Email it to hoa@ivn.us Over the course of 2020, public health, racial equity and authentic placemaking have surfaced as key issues in the San Diego-Tijuana region and across the country, as the coronavirus pandemic and nationwide protests have taken center stage. To provide San Diego-Tijuana civic planning and development professionals a blueprint for moving forward equitably and knowledgeably, the San Diego-Tijuana District of

The mainstream political narrative would have people believe that Americans are more deeply entrenching themselves under the banner of the Republican or Democratic Party as the divide between the parties continues to widen.Yet, a closer look at registration trends shows a different story. The Open Primaries Education Fund (OPEF) released a new report Monday titled, “The Next Great Migration: The Rise of Independent Voters.” Its findings show that in nearly every state that registers voters by

This is an independent opinion. Have one of your own? Email it to hoa@ivn.us The looming expiration of the city of San Diego’s franchise agreement with San Diego Gas & Electric may not be on your radar as a citizen, but perhaps it should be. Through this agreement, an outside company delivers gas and electricity to homes in San Diego, using transmission and distribution lines located on city property. Right now, and for the past 50 years, that’s SDG&E, and its franchise agreement with the city

California is in the throes of another COVID-19 surge — cases are skyrocketing and hospital beds are filling up quickly. On Tuesday, hospitals had 3,300 more COVID patients than at the beginning of this month, state health officials said. But a glimmer of hope has emerged in the last leg of 2020: The first batch of vaccines could arrive in early December. On Friday, the pharmaceutical company Pfizer announced that it had requested approval for emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and

San Diego advocates of Ranked Choice Voting said they have renewed momentum after the election reform measure was approved in several U.S. cities and in the state of Alaska. Five cities, including Albany and Eureka in California, and the state of Alaska approved Ranked Choice Voting measures during the last election cycle. The election change allows voters to rank their candidate preferences on the ballot rather than just pick one candidate. If a candidate doesn’t receive the majority of votes

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. ‍ Next year's redistricting landscape is, at best, a mixed bag for good-governance advocates. Although the mapmaking process has become fairer and less politicized in a handful of states over the past decade, partisan gerrymandering will still have a profound impact on representation across most of the country. Democrats had high hopes of taking back enough power