Search query: independent voter project

A surprising new bipartisan bill surfaced this week, brought forth by a bipartisan team of lawmakers, giving pot supporters a new reason to light up. Rep. Thomas Garrett (R-Va.) introduced H.R. 1227, the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017. The bill would allow states to fully dictate the way they handle both medical and recreational marijuana policy without risk of intervention by the federal government. Garrett is joined by U.S. Reps Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), Scott Taylor (R-Va.

On Wednesday, March 1, a nonpartisan, top-two bill proposed by Illinois state State Rep. Sara Jimenez (R) was assigned to Election and Campaign Finance Committee. The bill, HB3655, was originally introduced on February 10, and would make Illinois the third state to adopt a top-two primary system for statewide elections. IVN reported in January on another bill, HB0285, introduced by state Rep. Mike Fortner (R) that would reform state primary elections the same way. Fortner's bill was also assign

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go5qGge61cM Bernie Sanders may no longer be fighting for causes such as open primaries and a fairer election process, choosing instead to focus on progressive economic and domestic issues. However, that does not mean the fight to change the Democratic Party and the Democratic primary process is dead. During Wednesday night's final DNC chair debate on CNN, there was more than once voice that said there was a real need for the Democratic Party to be more -- well -

In the pilot episode of IVN's newest podcast, A Civil Assessment, T.J. O'Hara takes a look at electoral reform around the country. From measures and bills that have successfully passed, Ranked Choice Voting in Maine and Measure K in San Diego, to those just introduced on the floor, like top-two in Nevada, T.J. breaks down how each movement aims to "de-rig" elections. Republican State Senator James Settelmeyer  introduced Nevada's top-two bill on Tuesday, February 7. The bill, SB103, would imple

On February 7, 2017, the second day of the biannual Nevada legislative session, State Senator James Settelmeyer (R-Minden) introduced Senate Bill (SB) 103. This bill, if passed and signed by the governor, would replace the state’s closed primary system with a non-partisan, blanket top-two primary. The bill is currently awaiting a hearing in the Senate Legislative Operations and Elections Committee. Whether it gets one is up to the committee chair. This is the second consecutive session Senator

Today, we talk about Electoral College reform as if the only options are to keep it or get rid of it. But what if the Electoral College today looks nothing like the Electoral College that the Founders envisioned? First, it is important to think about context. At the time the Electoral College was drafted, there were no political parties. And while there were serious debates over everything from whether we would have a central banking system to the powers of the president, one thing almost ever

I voted for Bernie Sanders. Not because I’m a liberal. Not for any particular ideological reason, actually. I voted for Bernie Sanders in the primary because, to me, he represented the only real challenge to the Democratic AND Republican Party establishment that continues to put their own partisan interests and rhetoric ahead of actually governing. In Bernie Sanders, we had the first presidential candidate who talked about things that mattered to non-partisan voters. Money in politics is impo

Legal efforts to shut out voters from publicly-funded primary elections in Hawaii and Montana may be heard by the Supreme Court next week. The lawsuits challenging open primaries were brought by Republicans and Democrats alike. On February 17, the court will decide whether to reconsider the findings of lower courts in the cases of Ravalli County Republican Party v McCulloch and Democratic Party of Hawaii v Nago. Previous decisions have upheld Montana and Hawaii’s open primaries as constitution

Overturns voter backed ethics referendum despite massive constituent outcry FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Pierre, SD: Today, Governor Dennis Daugaard signed HB 1069, a repeal of a the South Dakota Government Accountability and Anti-Corruption Act that was just passed by voters in November. Nearly 52 percent of voters backed the anti-corruption law. The repeal proposal overturns the election results. https://www.facebook.com/RepresentUs/posts/1702716879742176 "The public will remember this vote as th

In a surprising decision, Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the U.S. District Court in Washington D.C. ruled against the Federal Election Commission in the case of Level the Playing Field et al v. Federal Election Commission holding that the rules governing participation in the presidential debates were decided unfairly and arbitrarily. Level the Playing Field (LPF), the organization that brought the suit, challenged the 501(c)(3) nonprofit status of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) arguing