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Things looked like they could get even more chaotic this week in the mid-cycle gerrymandering arms race between the two major parties as the Indiana Senate took up a new congressional map to give Republicans an even greater electoral advantage in the state. But Indiana Senate Republicans this week put their foot down and declared that they want no part in this race to the bottom.

The Washington Post reports that according to six people familiar with the discussions, President Donald Trump is expected to direct federal agencies to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III controlled substance.

As voters brace for what is expected to be a chaotic and divisive midterm election cycle, U.S. Representatives Jamie Raskin (Md.), Don Beyer (Va.), and U.S. Senator Peter Welch (Vt.) have re-introduced legislation that would require ranked choice voting (RCV) for all congressional primaries and general elections beginning in 2030.

The National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers (NANR) held its 9th annual summit in Miami this week following a year of political chaos and partisan machinations that put power before representation, accountability, and fairness.

As IVN’s Shawn Griffiths travels to Miami to share hard-earned intel at the National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers (NANR) conference, Chad and Cara focus on Washington, DC, where a 73 percent mandate for an open primary and ranked-choice voting is being slow-walked into something smaller and safer for the political class.

Independent Voter News is saddened to share the passing of Bob Foster, a trusted advisor to the Independent Voter Project and a longtime friend of our organization. He died on Sunday at the age of 78.

According to reporting from The Washington Informer and WUSA9 (CBS), D.C. Councilmember Wendell Felder (D Ward 7) has withdrawn his emergency legislation that would have required the D.C. Board of Elections (DCBOE) to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment before implementing ranked choice voting (RCV) in 2026. Felder’s proposal did not receive enough support from his colleagues during the council’s December 2 legislative meeting, following a breakfast discussion earlier that morning.

The D.C. Council may delay the implementation of ranked choice voting (RCV), frustrating pro-democracy forces that understandably want the voter-approved law in place for next year’s elections.

As Congress and state legislatures debate how to safeguard veterans’ disability benefits, a fast-growing industry of for-profit claims consultants is pouring millions of dollars into lobbying and legal fights to preserve a business model that has become both enormously profitable and fiercely controversial.

A federal court has blocked Texas from using its newly approved congressional map, halting Republican efforts to add five seats that could have strengthened their majority in Washington.