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Editor's note: this article was co-authored by Cathy Stewart (introduction) and Caroline Donnola (main article). The Politics for the People (P4P) Book Club brings together independent-minded Americans to read a wide range of books—both fiction and non-fiction—of interest to independents.  With each selection, we have a lively dialogue on the P4P blog culminating in an hour conference call conversation with our author. We just finished reading Greg Orman’s book, A Declaration of Independents:

Byline Note: This article was co-written by Harry Kresky, general counsel for Independent Voting, and Wayne Griffin, chairman of the SC Independence Party and Greer City Councilmember. T  he South Carolina Republican Party is asking voters on primary day to weigh in on whether voters “believe they should have the option to choose to affiliate with a political party when they register to vote. …” This “advisory” vote seems innocent enough. Until you take a closer look. Here’s why voters should

Another election season, another increasingly bizarre redrawing of the electoral map. In states across the U.S., voting districts are elongated and chopped, stretched like taffy to cover certain state regions and amputated to avoid others. All these calculations and measurements work to ensure that our democratic system of government doesn’t function the way it is intended. The process of redrawing favorable district lines — affectionately termed “gerrymandering” — is an unfortunate outgrowth o

Just two weeks before Earth Day, President Trump announced his plan to launch a missile strike against Syria, stoking the flames of the War on Terror. Following the strike, Trump tweeted “Mission Accomplished,” a proclamation that sounds eerily familiar. Here we go again. The past 3 years have experienced a surge of political activism from all sides. However, it is concerning that there is little support for antiwar efforts. The Nationwide Solidarity March for Peace, which occurred last Octobe

The DNC must have been high when it filed a lawsuit on April 20th against the "Russian government, the Trump campaign and the WikiLeaks organization alleging a far-reaching conspiracy to disrupt the 2016 campaign and tilt the election to Donald Trump." Well certainly the Trump campaign was part of a very open conspiracy to tilt the election to Donald Trump. That's called an election campaign, amiright? And what are they suing WikiLeaks for? Engaging in journalism? After all this talk from D

If 2016 taught me anything, it is how disastrous political polls have become. And as we head into the 2018 midterms, we should take a hard look how we are conducting them, crunching the numbers and using the results. Voters deserve it. On November 2nd, 2016 Marquette University Law School in Wisconsin issued it’s highly regarded presidential polling results. It was memorable for two reasons. The first reason is that it was conducted between October 26th through the 31st, the time frame in which

This week, Attorney Michael Attanasio and those representing the SoccerCity initiative filed a lawsuit to toss out the SDSU West initiative on the grounds it violates state law. Attanasio said, "Public university names are the property of the state and its citizens, and this law was specifically intended to prevent their exploitation by private business interests." The suit claims the SDSU West effort violated the provisions of California's Education Code by using the SDSU name in the title for

It's no secret the State of California is tearing at its political seams, careening towards a tipping point with the Sanctuary City battle leading the way. TWO of the states THREE largest counties, both in Southern California, have now voted to oppose SB-54, the bill that limits law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. San Diego and Orange counties represent more than 6 million people. Los Angeles County, which hasn't weighed in on the subject, represents some 9 millio

Every parent wants a healthy child, right? Too often, though, people neglect to consider just how much the events of childhood can leave a lasting impact on a child. For example, we have only very recently started to understand just how much mental illness is impacting the current younger generations, and recent conversations in the gun control debates have drawn new attention to the high number of young people living with mental health issues. New laws are being designed to give young people

Many Americans are currently wondering, “Why don’t our elections result in governments that implement thoughtful, public interest policies that are supported by the majority of Americans?” The reason is process. Most of us worry about policies -- How much are we taxed? How well are the roads maintained? Or worse, we are being distracted by issues that divide us, rather than paying attention to the rules by which we elect leaders and how we are governed. That has led to an unhealthy democracy. P