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Growing up in Madison, Wis., Stephen Whitburn said he was taught civic engagement mattered. But what mattered even more than civic engagement is doing the right thing. With the lessons from his parents in mind, Whitburn finally won a seat for public office after his third campaign in 12 years. Whitburn will represent District 3 on the San Diego City Council, beating his opponent, Toni Duran by 17,500 votes, 63% to 37%. Whitburn is joined by Joe LaCava and Sean Elo, who won in their respective

Now that Californians have voted to keep ride-hailing drivers classified as contractors with limited job benefits, unions are shoring up their defenses as labor lawyers eye legal challenges and hope that Democrat Joe Biden ekes out a White House victory. In a major blow to organized labor, 58% of California voters have thus far backed Proposition 22, sending ride-hailing giants’ stock prices soaring Wednesday. Labor groups that spent $20 million against Prop. 22, meanwhile, are warning that the

Votes are still being counted in several states across the country. Unlike the year 2000, Florida is not in the spotlight. However, Florida should be highlighted as the state where a proposed state constitutional amendment received 57% of the vote but will not be adopted. Amendment 3 proposed the implementation of nonpartisan top-two open primaries to reform the current closed primary system in Florida. A clear majority of Florida voters want to get rid of our closed primaries; yet, since 2006,

This is the first in a two-part series on Gompers Preparatory Academy in Southeastern San Diego. Read the second installment here. Fifteen years ago, I had the privilege of sitting in the boardroom when San Diego Unified School District’s Board of Education authorized the conversion of Gompers Middle School to an independent charter school. This was a turbulent time, with Alan Bersin as superintendent, a teachers union in revolt and a dysfunctional school board. In this midst of this tumult ca

Ben Sheehan joins host T.J. O’Hara on Deconstructed to discuss his new book, OMG WTF Does the Constitution Actually Say? – A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy is Supposed to Work. You may think you know the origins of the “OMG WTF” acronyms, but you will have to listen to the interview to determine whether your assumptions are correct. Mr. Sheehan is a Funny or Die alumnus and an award-winning executive producer who has spent his career creating innovative and entertaining content in an eff

Native San Diegan Shakema Martin says she may still be employed today if she weren’t Black. Martin, a Mira Mesa native, was working at a Carlsbad company until August when she caught COVID-19. She quarantined until she felt better and returned to work with a doctor’s note, clearing her of the highly contagious virus. “They let me start work right away but told me I needed my doctor to fill out other paperwork,” she said. Martin found it difficult to complete her extra work during her Monda

Editor's Note: John Pudner is the President of Take Back Action Fund, which does not endorse candidates. Independent Voter News also does not endorse candidates. The views in this piece are the personal views of the author. ‍ Despite publicly predicting Biden’s election and being independent-minded enough to break with fellow Republicans on a few issues (campaign finance and gerrymandering reform, ranked choice voting and wearing masks), I believe it is more important for independents to vote

‍ Many Americans are fed up with a political process that has produced no long-term solutions to the nation’s biggest problems. Despite being told the system is “of, by, and for” them, the reality is public officials have for a long time failed to deliver on that promise. Yet, no matter what course of action voters take, nothing changes. When Democrats don’t deliver, voters turn to Republicans. When Republicans don’t deliver, they turn to Democrats. And around and around the nation goes, w

This is an independent opinion. Have one of your own? Email it to hoa@ivn.us Reality is chronic diseases, illnesses and conditions impact each and every one of us. The harsh, but unfortunate truth is not if, but when you or someone you love will be impacted by that fate. For my family, that day became a reality when our newborn daughter was diagnosed with a fatal immunodeficiency disease that would only give her a couple of years to live. In 2012, when my daughter Evangelina, “Evie,” was just

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. ‍ It's often hard to see, but much more is at stake Tuesday than the presidency and control of Congress. Voters get to shape public policy by approving or rejecting more than 100 statewide ballot measures and dozens more local proposals — and this exercise in direct democracy includes plenty of ideas for bettering American democracy itself. More than a score of m