Search query: independent voter project

It is no secret that the two major parties in the U.S have actively worked to rig the election system for their own benefit and so they can drown out any independent voices. I was reminded of this fact earlier this year when the Florida legislature was unable to come up with a new district map after the previous one was found to be illegal. Inspired by my home state, I want to shed light on a few other obstacles the parties put in front of our democracy. Things like... Gerrymandering. It used t

California’s revolutionary top-two nonpartisan system, adopted as Proposition 14 in 2010, is not revolutionary at all. In fact, it’s almost the exact system we have had in San Diego for a long, long time—except for two critical differences here: 1. If a candidate gets more than 50 percent in the primary, we don’t even hold a general election. In other words, if a majority of voters who come out to the polls in the June primary agree on any one candidate, the general election voters don’t even

On Thursday, the League of Women Voters of San Diego will host a panel discussion on the influence of money in politics. The program is appropriately titled, Is it One Person, One Vote or One Dollar, One Vote? and features panelists David Loy, Legal Director at the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, John Lawrence of the San Diego Free Press, and Michael Aguirre, former San Diego city attorney. With the 2016 presidential campaigns in full force, candidates have already spent close to $100 m

The most recent scuffle over congressional redistricting in Virginia illustrates how poor a job single-winner districts do at achieving meaningful elections with fair results. The maps and tables above present the impact of four approaches to congressional districting in Virginia. As part of an amicus brief submitted in federal court, Common Cause analyzed these maps: the first two (on top) it describes as partisan gerrymanders, giving the Intervenor’s plan a grade letter of “F.” Common Cause g

In light of recent court precedent that insulates political parties from any form of regulation by the state, the Independent Voter Project (IVP) is challenging the public funding and administration of party central committee elections. California state law provides that a county registrar shall conduct party central committee elections at the request of any qualified political party (see e.g., California Elections Code sections 7230 and 7425). However, as the political parties have successful

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-_n0SYYnBA On October 10, the Independent Voter Project hosted a panel discussion at the first annual Politicon event in Los Angeles, California. The panel, “Outside the Partisan Narrative: From Journalism to Elections,” concentrated on what institutional reforms are necessary to alleviate systemic partisanship and voter disillusionment within the status quo. It is not a new revelation that voters are disillusioned and disengaged from the political process. Vot

With two election cycles under its belt, California’s nonpartisan primary system has shown positive results for electoral competition and voter confidence. Studies show that changing the first stage of the election from a private party nomination process to a nonpartisan public process results in more competitive elections, produces a more productive legislature, and enhances overall satisfaction with representation. California’s Proposition 14, which established a “Top-Two” nonpartisan primary

On July 24, 2015, Greg Dorsey filed a lawsuit against the Maryland State Board of Elections, arguing that the state's requirements for independent ballot access for a Senate seat are unconstitutional. Dorsey claims that those who run as unaffiliated candidates are faced with unfair requirements that violate the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S Constitution. Beyond what one might think constitutes a "free and fair election," Maryland state law requires a non-affiliated candidate to obt

LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CALIF. -- In this age of smartphones, touch-screens and the Internet, Los Angeles County’s 50-year-old voting system of punch cards and user guides ranks closer to the era of chalk marks and blackboards. Now, the most populous county in the U.S. is less than one year away from completing the design stage of an overhaul that could mark the beginning of a new way of voting in California and beyond. Dean Logan, the registrar-recorder for Los Angeles, where five million voters c

“We need an insurgency of the rational: a generation of Americans who are fed up with the current political system, who believe we can do better, and most important, who are ready to do something about it.”. — Charles Wheelan - Founder of The Centrist Project and author of “The Centrist Manifesto” Millions of people intuitively understand the four simple words Mr. Wheelan opened with in The Centrist Manifesto, a book he wrote in 2013 calling for fundamental change to end the U.S.’s dysfunctiona