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The AP reported Monday that the Supreme Court has rejected two cases challenging open primaries in Montana and Hawaii. The justices did not comment on their decision to leave the Ninth Circuit's rulings in place. The majority parties in both states -- Democratic Party of Hawaii and Republican committees in Montana -- filed a legal challenge against the open primary laws in their respective states, which allow voters to choose a party ballot on primary election day without consideration of their

This week, AB 837 passed the California Assembly Appropriations Committee. The bill requires polling places across the state to put up giant posters during presidential primaries that inform independent voters (registered as No Party Preference) on which parties allow them to participate in "their" primary. On Wednesday, April 26, representatives from the Independent Voter Project (a co-publisher of IVN) went to Sacramento to voice their opposition to the bill. While the Independent Voter Proje

Let’s have a little chat about politics. No, not about how we’re all so divided. And not about how we should all try to get along. Let’s talk about how the whole system needs an overhaul. See, while academics quibble over whether our country is a ‘democracy’ or a ‘republic’, we can all agree that the political system in the United States is supposed to represent the people. But it doesn’t. Who does it represent? The establishment: the wealthy and powerful people who make the rules by which the

With a government as dysfunctional and polarized as ours, the question is often asked: “Why are there not more independent lawmakers in office?” Pundits will often offer the answer that it is because A) most Americans have a partisan slant, and B) independent candidates would not have the support or resources to win. But it is starting to look like those responses are no longer true: A). Recent polling shows that a majority of Americans have an unfavorable opinion of both parties, no doubt a

In such a polarized landscape, it’s hard to believe that the majority of voters actually identify as being an independent. Making up the largest portion of voters in America, they’re the ones who often sway the vote in one direction or another. In the swing state of Ohio, this is an all-too-apparent fact of life. Despite this fact and the state's notoriously divided voter demographic, few independent candidates have stepped up to speak for the voters. Enter 24-year-old political newcomer Matt

Sacramento, CA, May 9, 2017 - The organization that authored California's nonpartisan primary system, the Independent Voter Project (IVP), has submitted a letter in support of AB 901, a bill sponsored by Assemblymembers Todd Gloria and Shirley Weber, that would pave the way for San Diego County to change their primary process and get rid of the 50%+1 rule. IVP authored last year’s Measure K, which eliminated the rule in San Diego City that allowed candidates for city offices to win outright in

Bernie Sanders supporters continue their fight against the Democratic National Committee, California lawmakers aren't addressing the real problem with presidential primaries, and an independent candidate emerges in Maine's gubernatorial race. All that and more this week in nonpartisan news. 1. DNC Again Defends Its Private Right to Cheat Bernie Sanders One of the hottest stories this week came from the transcript in Wilding, et. al. v. DNC Services, d/b/a DNC and Deborah “Debbie” Wasserman Sc

Evangelizers often run into resistance, and so I’ve noticed not everyone I talk to about the Centrist Project gets excited. “Sorry, but it’s a waste of time. Third parties can’t succeed in America. We’ve got a two-party system and these are the two parties we’ve got.” Or to put it differently, we’re stuck with the way things are. But the lessons of American history aren’t quite as clear cut as the naysayers would have it. ALSO READ: Independents Are Ready to #HackTheSenate in 2018 Third parti

Update: A federal judge dismissed the DNC lawsuit on August 28. The court recognized that the DNC treated voters unfairly, but ruled that the DNC is a private corporation; therefore, voters cannot protect their rights by turning to the courts: To the extent Plaintiffs wish to air their general grievances with the DNC or its candidate selection process, their redress is through the ballot box, the DNC's internal workings, or their right of free speech — not through the judiciary." Rather than r

On Wednesday, representatives from the Independent Voter Project went to Sacramento to voice their opposition to Assembly Bill 837. The bill, brought by Assemblymember Evan Low, is geared toward educating no party preference voters on how to participate in the state’s semi-closed primary elections. While the Independent Voter Project is strongly in favor of increasing voter education, their opposition to the bill stems from the fact that it maintains a semi-closed primary election, despite the