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On the surface, it often seems like our existing two-party dominated system is somehow the way our country is “meant to be” and nothing could change that regardless of how dysfunctional things become. But in poll after poll and in countless other ways, the American people are saying loudly and clearly that the major political parties and their leaders are failing the country and the state. That is why more and more people today identify as independents rather than as Republicans or Democrats.

Property rights are fundamental in America – or at least they are supposed to be. Yet each year, prosecutors and law enforcement agencies seize hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of cars, homes, cash and other property, with no due process to determine guilt or innocence, or even without even filing charges against the property owner. It’s called asset seizure or civil forfeiture, and it’s just wrong. By claiming that you or your property are related to criminal activity, the government j

Chad Peace, attorney for the Independent Voter Project, as well as 6 high-profile signatories, filed an amicus brief on September 22, 2017, in support of a legal challenge brought by Level the Playing Field (LPF). On October 13, Peace spoke about the brief and its significance to changing the exclusionary presidential debate rules on NBC7 in San Diego. "The brief argues that the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates' (CPD) 15 percent rule exacerbates the political divide in the US, lea

Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts (R) begins the 2018 election cycle with lukewarm political standing and may be vulnerable to a strong challenge from an independent candidate. According to a recent survey of likely voters in next year’s election -- commissioned by independent gubernatorial candidate and State Senator Bob Krist's campaign -- more voters are inclined to support someone new for governor than say they would re-elect the incumbent. Independent voters in particular have soured on Ric

Although marijuana became legal in the state of Colorado, marijuana trafficking is not legal. Recently, more than 60 people were charged with illegally growing and distributing more than 4,000 pounds of marijuana within the state of Colorado and across state lines. The Denver Police Department responded to a complaint that eventually led them to uncover one of the biggest drug busts in Colorado by leading them to unlicensed marijuana growers in warehouses and residences throughout the Denver M

The bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debate’s (CPD) 15 percent rule exacerbates the political divide in the US, leaves millions of voters unrepresented in presidential elections, and undermines fundamental democratic principles in order to protect the two-party duopoly. That is the argument the Independent Voter Project and 6 individual signatories make in an amicus curiae brief filed Friday in support of a legal challenge brought by Level the Playing Field (LPF) against the debate commiss

Voting in America is not easy. You first have to register. You have to find your polling place. In most states, you have to take time before, during, or after work to get to your polling place. You have to wait in line, sometimes for hours. In some states, you even have to prove you are who you say you are. And then, after all that, in the vote for president at least, if you don’t happen to vote for the candidate who happens to win in your state, your vote is worth nothing. It counts for nothi

Nebraska State Senator Bob Krist made two big moves Wednesday: (1) He switched his party affiliation from Republican to independent, and (2) he announced he is running for governor. Krist, a retired Air Force veteran, has served in Nebraska's unique unicameral legislature for 10 years. Yet during that time, he says the once nonpartisan chamber has succumbed to the same partisan-driven politics in Washington. “Voters are fed up with partisan politics that divide us rather than unite us. Partisa

Party politics is killing America and Illinois. It is not enough to just elect different people into a bad system. We have to fundamentally change politics, and that starts with real open primaries. The 2016 presidential election has opened the eyes of Americans who are more aware than ever of a rigged political system working against the voters. Americans are fed up with a political party establishment more interested in their side “winning” than in what is best for the country. This toxic b

After each presidential election in which the popular vote winner and the Electoral College winner differ, the country revisits the question, “Why do we still have the Electoral College?” Opponents of the Electoral College argue that basing the winner on the college leads candidates to focus only on swing states, which leaves out most of the country. For example, 94% of the 2016 presidential campaign events (375 of the 399) took place in only twelve states. Two-thirds (273 of 399) of the gener