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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

The 2016 election seems like a distant memory from a lifetime ago. But 2020 isn't really qualitatively different, just more of what 2016 was. We're seeing that wild year's ghosts of partisanship in overdrive this year. And there's likely not one person who doesn't find it all extraordinarily peculiar. In one of many echoes from 2016, Donald Trump is bringing the rigged election rhetoric harder than ever. This time backed with numerous lawsuits. Many have already been dismissed, others are in pr

This is an independent opinion. Have one of your own? Write it! Email it to hoa@ivn.us And then there was Todd Gloria. San Diego’s first gay man, first person of color, first hip (surely you have heard him called “the Todster”) mayor. In other words, a person who couldn’t have been elected to even the City Council a generation ago, let alone mayor of San Diego. It’s hard to grasp just how much San Diego’s politics have changed in the past 20 years – from a time when Republicans dominated ever

The movements to reform the electoral process in the US made significant and historic gains during the 2020 election. Voters in 5 cities approved the use of ranked choice voting, and Alaska voters combined the use of RCV in the general election with the first top-four nonpartisan open primary. And, in St. Louis, voters approved the first nonpartisan open primary combined with approval voting. Changing how voters elect public officials is at the core of the nonpartisan reform effort. The curr

Supporting homelessness causes can sometimes feel like rooting for the Los Angeles Chargers. Not that San Diegans should feel obligated to cheer for a greedy, mercenary NFL owner who unforgivably ripped the heart out of a faithful community by moving his team to L.A. Anyone still grasping on to Chargers loyalty, though, has watched recent squads master the art of unlikely last-minute losses. One pundit wrote that the team deserves “a black belt in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.” I

A popular English teacher at Francis Parker School is resigning over pending in-person instruction rules, and officials of the elite private school in Linda Vista fear a student boycott. Chris Harrington, head of the English Department in the Upper and Middle schools and a faculty member since 1991, emailed students Thursday. “Because my wife is in a high-risk category for COVID complications, I wanted to wait until I felt like the risk was minimized,” he said, noting that a change in school p

It’s been over a week since Election Day and America still doesn’t know for sure who will be sworn in on Jan 20. It looks an awful lot like Joe Biden, but Donald Trump and his supporters have cast a shadow of a doubt over the election results in close and electorally crucial swing states. So it’s actually worse than not knowing for sure. A large and irate faction of Americans is certain Joe Biden won. Another large and irate faction of Americans is certain Donald Trump won. These lobes of Amer

The COVID-19-related private event cancellations started in February, reaching a crescendo in March as the pandemic closed down travel worldwide. Meetings, conventions and catered private events, including weddings, ground to an abrupt halt. By the time the state and county issued lockdown orders catering and event professionals' suspended businesses were already facing hibernation at best. San Diego’s tourism and events industry, which represents about $11.6 billion in annual total visitor spe

The biggest overlooked story from this election is how reformers made history, once again. From Virginia to California, voters sent a message that they want less hyper-partisanship, greater voter choice and better representation. To celebrate our accomplishments and dive deep into how we move forward in the coming years, we’re hosting a two-day December Spotlight on Friday, December 11, and Saturday, December 12. The Zoom event will feature workshops, briefings, and group discussions, hosted

With California’s junior senator Kamala Harris poised to become America’s first female vice president, a remarkable pattern has taken hold: Once again, a woman from California is making history in the nation’s capital. “While I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last,” Harris vowed in her victory speech Saturday night. California also is home to the first woman to become Speaker of the House, Democrat Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, who first won the post in 2007. And, whe