From MAGA’s takeover of the GOP to the rise of democratic socialists, the author argues that America’s political upheaval is a symptom of an election system that rewards party capture, discourages independent competition, and leaves voters with too few choices.
From the election reform battles of 2024 to the campaigns of 2026, a new documentary follows the independent voters who keep fighting to change American politics—even when the odds are stacked against them.
California voters broke the political parties’ grip on primary elections in 2010. A new repeal effort raises a fundamental question: Who should get to choose the candidates on the November ballot?
Alaska's repeal campaign inadvertently reveals voter demand for open primaries by attacking them. With independents making up two-thirds of Alaska voters, the message is clear: voters want to participate without choosing a party first.
A federal judge paused a Texas GOP lawsuit seeking closed primaries, saying the legislature should decide the issue in 2027. The case has exposed a divide within the party, with Abbott and Cornyn taking opposing positions on whether to exclude independent voters from taxpayer-funded primaries.
A campaign ad in Alaska claims Ballot Measure 2 would bring back open primaries and reject dark money, but the state already has nonpartisan open primaries that the measure would actually repeal and restrict campaign finance transparency.
From open primaries and multi-member districts to campaign finance reform and a culture that encourages more people to run, there are ways to bring competition back to elections where voters too often have only one choice.
Alaska's effort to repeal ranked choice voting would also roll back campaign finance transparency rules, removing disclosure requirements for dark money and out-of-state donations that voters approved in 2020.
Nearly 90% of House seats are already decided before Election Day, with most contested only in partisan primaries that exclude independent voters and limit meaningful participation to just 9.4% of the voting-age population.
Plus, Rob Sand promises to give independents an equal vote in Iowa. More and more independent voters are changing the conversation and the movement for fairer elections has garnered a national stage.
A whistleblower leak reveals Trump's USPS mail-in ballot rule could invalidate entire batches of ballots over a single envelope error, threatening midterm elections already underway in multiple states.
Independent voters are Kentucky’s fastest-growing political bloc, but nearly 384,000 remain shut out of the partisan primaries that help decide who governs them.
Katherine Gehl
Robert Pease
Dan Schnur
Jeremy Gruber
Shawn Griffiths
Independent Voter Podcast
