Search query: maine

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

Editor's Note: This article originally published in The Fulcrum and has been republished with permission from the publisher. ‍ A long, and long-shot, quest to get more candidates onto the presidential debate stage has run aground in a federal appeals court. The Libertarian and Green parties, and the nonprofit advocacy group Level the Playing Field, have been challenging the debate qualifications for six years, arguing they unfairly if not unconstitutionally favored the nominees of the two ma

Editor's Note: This article originally published on The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. Compromise legislation that would make it easier to vote absentee in North Carolina this fall, and safer to vote in person, has been cleared with bipartisan support in the General Assembly. But it faces an uncertain future on the desk of Gov. Roy Cooper, who is being pressed by fellow Democrats for a veto because of a voter identification provision added at the l

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inadequacies of most elections in the US, specifically when it comes to protecting the right of voters in the midst of a crisis. However, two reforms have taken center stage in the ongoing conversation on how to provide safe and secure elections going forward: vote at home and ranked choice voting. The National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers (NANR), in partnership with Unite America, hosted a virtual discussion over Zoom on Tuesday, June 8, to spotli

Many Mainers, for the first time, have been confronted with what it means to have their right to vote threatened. It’s a deeply unsettling feeling. Which is why editorial boards across the state, including, on April 5, the Maine Sunday Telegram, have called for steps to be taken to ensure broad voter participation and safety. As Gov. Mills has declared: “A person’s right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, and I take seriously government’s responsibility to ensure that every Maine perso

Voter Choice for Massachusetts 2020 (Voter Choice Mass) announced Wednesday that it has smashed the signature requirement to get ranked choice voting on the November ballot well ahead of the petition deadline. Not only that, people working with the campaign say it is on pace to collect the most signatures for a ballot initiative in Massachusetts history. In an email to supporters, the campaign said it has collected 17,084 raw signatures, and is averaging over 800 new signatures per day. It need

This article was first published on The Fulcrum The GOP has sued to prevent the effort to conduct the November election almost entirely by mail in the nation's most populous state as a way to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The lawsuit, filed Sunday in federal court, says Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom exceeded his authority this month by telling county election officials to send all 20.7 million registered Californians a ballot this fall. His order would potentially double the number of A

This article first appeared on The Fulcrum Shouted down as a "spoiler" for three weeks after announcing he was getting ready to run for president as a Libertarian, Justin Amash has abandoned the idea of a third-party candidacy. The coronavirus pandemic's hindrance on his prospects was the reason offered last weekend by the Republican-turned-independent conservative congressman from Michigan. But many will fairly conclude he was bowing to the withering attacks he received. We all purport to wa

Many are aware by now that US Rep. Justin Amash has decided not to run for president -- citing the cumbersome realities the current political system presents to candidates outside the two major parties. “After much reflection, I’ve concluded that circumstances don’t lend themselves to my success as a candidate for president this year, and therefore I will not be a candidate,” said Amash. However, what got less attention in the mainstream conversation is what Amash said after this. The r

This article was first published on The Fulcrum New Jersey piloted a new online voting system for people with disabilities this week, but a lawsuit could stop the state from using it again. Human rights activists and law school students are challenging the new voting system, arguing it's unfair to expose only one category of voters to significant risk their ballots will get hacked with impunity. Using a special app to vote over the internet is denigrated by most cybersecurity experts, who sa