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40% of Americans are independent...
...yet the entire political infrastructure has been built around the interests of
political parties...
...Independents are
calling for Congressional Hearings to shine a spotlight on what is a critical issue in our democracy ...
Sign up to Participate
Jacqueline Salit, President of IndependentVoting.org, hosts a bi-monthly national conference call, updating independents on the latest developments of our growing movement.
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Independent groups
CUIP is motivating, training and supporting an activist network of independent leaders who are building throughout the country.
AL, Independent Alabama
AZ, Independent Voters of Arizona
CA, IndependentVoice.Org
CT, Independent Party
DE, Independent Party of Delaware
FL, Florida Independent Voting.org
GA, Georgia Independent Voters
GA, iMove
IA, Independent Voters of Iowa
ID, American Independent Movement
IL, United Independents of Illinois
KY, Independent Kentucky
MA, Massachusetts Coalition of Independent Voters
MD, Independent Movement of Maryland
MI, Grand Valley State College Independents
MS, Committee for Open Primaries
NC, North Carolina Independents
NM, Independent Voters of New Mexico
NV, Independent Voters of Nevada (IVON)
NY, New York City Independence Party
OH, Independent Ohio
PA, Independent Pennsylvanians
SC, Independence Party of South Carolina
SD, South Dakota Voice of Independents
TN, Independent Tennessee
UT, Utah League of Independent Voters
VA, Virginia Independent Voters Association (VIVA)
WI, Wisconsin Group for an Independent Voice (WiGiv) |
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Call for Congressional Hearings on the Second Class Status of Independent Voters. |
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IndependentVoting.org has launched a national campaign to lobby Congress to hold hearings on the structural discrimination in our electoral system against independent voters.
The purpose of our campaign is two-fold: 1) To educate Congress and shine a light on the effect of partisan control of the election process, namely that 40% of Americans have a second class status; and 2) to urge Congress to investigate these biases by holding hearings.
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Independentvoting.org's Communications Director, Sarah Lyons leads spokesperson training conference calls every 6-8 weeks. If you're interested in learning how to be a spokesperson, whether it be talking to a friend, making an announcement at a meeting, writing a letter to the editor or speaking on the radio, sign up to be contacted about the next one. Click here for materials, including Talking Points to get you started. Find out more about Spokesperson Training here. |
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In September, the Massachusetts Coalition of Independent Voters (MCOIV) met with Congressman Michael Capuano (D-MA). He gave the group a hard time, asking them "what makes you think you represent independents." Evelyn Dougherty, chair of MCOIV responded: "Congressman! 52% of Massachusetts voters are independents, yet we have no representation! That's why we're getting organized, so we can be represented!" They walked out of the meeting thinking, this was a good learning experience, but "he's not really supportive."
Later, Rep. Capuano wrote a letter to the Committee on House Administration that he also sent it to his constituents. Read the March Congressional campaign newsletter to find out more. |
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Sarah Lyons, Chair of the Richmond County (Staten Island) Independence Party (and also Independentvoting.org Communications Director) brought four members of her county Executive Committee and the party's Brooklyn chairman Bob Conroy, to meet with Congressman Michael Grimm whose district straddles both counties. The meeting was a success -- Grimm followed up with a letter to Rep. Trent Franks, chair of the Subcommittee on the Constitution of the Judiciary Committee, urging that he conduct hearings. (This is a great letter for you to bring with you when you meet with your Congress member). (Pictured Left to Right: Paul Gilibrisco, Eileen Kaufman, John Calabrese, Congressman Grimm, Sarah Lyons, Luz Sosa, Bob Conroy, Cong. Grimm's aide) Read Sarah's report on the meeting. |
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Virginia Independent Voter Association (VIVA) sent Greg Moohn, Steve Richardson and Julia Pfaff to Capitol Hill to educate congressional staff about the biases against independent voters. They spent four hours buttonholing staffers in the corridors, in their offices and in the lunch room, and gave them a crash course on the ways the partisan political structure denies the very existence of 40% of the country. By the end of their visit, Greg, Steve and Julia had met with staff from all 11 Virginia Representatives and both U.S. Senators.
Click here to read their full report. |
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Independents in the Media
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National organizers' Nancy Ross and Gwen Mandell can be heard on the radio: Ross on WNYC's "Voters Unhappy with Polarization Are Going Independent and Mandell on St. Louis, Missouri's CBS Affiliate, KMOX radio and Communications Director, Sarah Lyons' op ed Rank Partisanship Poisons Our Political Process is in the Staten Island Advance. Read Florida Sunshine Independent Linda Ricke's recent Op Ed Parties Dominate, Destroy Process in The Tallahassee Democrat
and Virginia Independent Voters' Association (VIVA) Greg Moohn's Letter to the Editor in the Rockridge Weekly Review. |
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Atlanta Radio Talk Show Host Helen Blocker-Adams is broadcasting a 15 minute commentary about the congresssional hearings on her show There's Always Hope on four radio stations in Greensville, Huntsville, Pensacola and Tupelo. The commentary can also be found on You Tube, Itunes and on Helen's website. |
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New York County Independence Party Chair Cathy Stewart, and Vice Chair, Alvaader Frazier, Esq. met with Congressman Edolphus Towns. Rep. Towns from Brooklyn, who is a member of the Subcommittee on Government Organization, Efficiency and Financial Managementva, unhesitantly said that he would like to help, that Congress should hold hearings to explore the barriers independents face, and that it is important to work to expand the number of people that are participating. Read our campaign's first newsletter here for more about what's going on around the country. |
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| Monica Betts, S. Florida intoducing the DVD Can Independents Reform America at her first Educational Workshop for Independents where she spoke about the Conressional Campaign |
Evelyn Dougherty & Diane Whitehouse in Boston, MA and Allen Cox and Dr. Jessie Fields in Harlem, NY taking the Congressional campaign to the streets where they asked folks to sign letters to their members of Congress |
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Can Independents Reform America? now available on DVD.
On February 12, 2011 hundreds of independent movement activists from 40 states gathered at a national conference in New York City to discuss that question.
The 2011 National Conference of Independents was sponsored by IndependentVoting.org and hosted by its President, Jackie Salit who delivered this dynamic multi-media keynote address available on DVD with bonus features. Click to receive your copy  |
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Coverage of the
2011
National Conference of Independents is available online:
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Independents Appeal U.S. District Court Decision Ruling Idaho's Open Primary System Unconstitutional.
Independents have taken an appeal from the decision of U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill ruling Idaho's open primary unconstitutional. Read the full press release here
And read the statement by Jackie Salit, President of Independentvoting.org after the ruling here
Idaho had an open primary system for 37 years, meaning that voters could choose to vote on any one party’s ballot. The trial’s outcome could change that...“It would have national ramifications,” said Harry Kresky (left), the country's leading legal advocate for independent voters. |
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Court Dismisses GOP Lawsuit to End Open Primary System in South Carolina.
"The Republican Party’s legal efforts to close its primary elections to those outside its ranks has met resistance both from the state attorney general of its own party and an unlikely coalition of independents who say they want voting influence in the state’s dominant political organization." So writes Eric Connor who is covering the lawsuit for the Greenville News.
Connor's follow up article is here.
Wayne Griffin (pictured left) chair of the South Carolina Independence Party and Greer City Councilman, delivered a report on the SC open primary fight at the recent National Conference of Independents. |
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Open Primary System Sustains Legal Challenge.
The recent decision by the California Supreme Court to reject an attempt to block the implementation of Proposition 14, the open primary, top two initiative passed by voters last June, is a positive and timely development.
The voters made a clear statement in passing Proposition 14 that they wanted to dislodge the supreme power of the parties. Though the state’s third parties—which supported the legal challenge are critics of the two-party system and say they want to give voters more competition elections—in this situation they have sided with the two parties against competition.
We’re glad the court rejected their effort to undo the very sweeping changes that Proposition 14 will bring to the state’s electoral process and to the 3.5 million independent voters who have gained full equality under the law.
Read attorney Harry Kresky's analysis in the Huffington Post. |
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