The Internet has made this the age of the instant political movement. Like-minded people (and even unlike-minded people) can find one another and quickly create a kind of critical mass. The hope, often the expectation, is that these new aggregations can bring positive change to the body politic. This includes seizing new opportunities for democratizing communication and communicating democracy, both of which are urgently needed.
Former Member, New York State Committee of the Independence Party (73rd AD) - Eastside Manhattan, and Former Member, New York City Independence Party Organizations - Manhattan Executive Committee and County Committee, representing the 73rd AD.
Free and Equal Elections Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization, whose mission is to shift the power back to the individual voter through education.
They focus their efforts at Universities, getting the students thinking and talking about the issues of the day, inviting them to mobilize, and inspiring honest leaders among them to run for Congress in 2014 as independents.
Bigger than just the Universities, inspiring all people, We The People, to run for Congress as independents in 2014, 2016, and beyond.
CLICK HERE for state by state filing deadlines and primary dates.
On May 10th at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion, the United We Stand Festival will take place. Attendees' will be inspired by the musicians and the speakers to get out and vote for new honest leaders.
In the desire to eliminate the “wasted voter syndrome” created by the mainstream media. Free and Equal will soon launch a one-stop information source that will help voters learn about candidates at the local, state and Federal levels. The electorate will be empowered through an “election assistant” app that will provide side-by-side candidate comparisons in a simple user interface.
Voters will have easy access to fact-based information, candidate voting records, and campaign finance records so that they will be able make informed decisions. The Free and Equal Election Assistant will provide a level playing field for all candidates, regardless of party affiliation, background, and campaign finances, so that all candidates have a chance to reach the voters.
From No Labels: When people think about Congress, they throw up their hands in frustration. But frustration doesn’t get us anywhere. Washington has problems. Now we have solutions. We’ve listed our 12 simple reforms from our Make Congress Work! action plan to change the rules and fix what's broken in Washington.
1. No Budget, No Pay -- If Congress can’t pass a budget and all annual spending bills on time, members of Congress should not get paid.
2. Up or Down Vote on Presidential Appointments -- All presidential nominations should be confirmed or rejected within 90 days of the nomination.
3. Fix the Filibuster -- Require real (not virtual) filibusters and end filibusters on motions to proceed.
4. Empower the Sensible Majority -- Allow a bipartisan majority of members to override a leader or committee chair’s refusal to bring a bill to the floor.
5. Make Members Come to Work -- Make Congress work on coordinated schedules with three five-day work weeks a month in DC and one week in members’ home districts.
6. Question Time for the President -- Provide a monthly forum for members of Congress to ask the president questions to force leaders to debate one another and defend their ideas.
7. Fiscal Report to Congress: Hear it. Read it. Sign it. -- A nonpartisan leader should deliver an annual, televised fiscal update in-person to a joint session of Congress to ensure everyone is working off the same facts.
8. No Pledge but the Oath of Office -- Members should make no pledge but the pledge of allegiance and their formal oath of office.
9. Monthly Bipartisan Gatherings -- The House and Senate should institute monthly, off-the-record and bipartisan gatherings to get members talking across party lines.
10. Bipartisan Seating -- At all joint meetings or sessions of Congress, each member should be seated next to at least one member of the other party.
11. Bipartisan Leadership Committee -- Congressional party leaders should form a bipartisan congressional leadership committee to discuss legislative agendas and substantive solutions.
12. No Negative Campaigns Against Incumbents -- Incumbents from one party should not conduct negative campaigns against sitting members of the opposing party.
I think the 1st step would be to vote for a number of independents to remove the majority possibility's in Congress of the two major parties.
Recently we have seen the following headlines about the upcoming 2012 Presidential Elections:
"LZ Granderson Column on the Benefits of Having At Least Three Choices in Presidential Elections"
“A New Kind of Third Party”
"Public Policy Polling Imagines Various 3-Way November 2012 Presidential Contests"
"Pat Caddell and Douglas Schoen Op-Ed in Wall Street Journal on Chances of Powerful “Other” Presidential Candidate"
"Matthew Dowd Essay on Chances of a Strong “Other” Presidential Candidate in 2012"
"PBS Newshour Interviews Two “Americans Elect” Leaders - Internet Voting for President/Vice President in 2012"
"Steve Kornacki Suggests 2012 Presidential Election Reminds Him of 1980 and 1992"
"James Carville Predicts Strong Non-Major Party Presidential Candidate in 2012"
And this is just from August, 2011.
So all the polls show the voters are unhappy with the current politicians no matter which party or their positions. But currently I do not see anyone strong enough to win in 2012 as a minor party candidate or as an independent.
But a different opportunity or disaster could happen, no candidate gets enough electoral college votes to win. If that happens the following will occur:
Contingent Presidential Election by House Pursuant to the Twelfth Amendment, the House of Representatives is required to go into session immediately to vote for President if no candidate receives a majority of the electoral votes (since 1964, 270 of the 538 electoral votes).
In this event, the House of Representatives is limited to choosing from among the three candidates who received the most electoral votes. Each state delegation votes en bloc - its members have a single vote collectively (and the District of Columbia does not receive a vote). A candidate must receive an absolute majority of state delegation votes (currently 26) in order for that candidate to become the President-elect. Additionally, delegations from at least two-thirds of all the states must be present for voting to take place. The House continues balloting until it elects a President.
The House of Representatives has chosen the President only twice: once under Article II, Section 1, Clause 3 (in 1801) and once under the Twelfth Amendment (in 1825).
Contingent Vice Presidential Election by Senate If no candidate for Vice President receives an absolute majority of electoral votes, then the Senate must go into session to elect a Vice President. The Senate is limited to choosing from only the top two candidates to have received electoral votes. The Senate votes in the normal manner in this case (i.e., ballots are individually cast by each Senator, not by state delegations). However, two-thirds of the Senators must be present for voting to take place.
Additionally, the Twelfth Amendment states that a "majority of the whole number" of Senators (currently 51 of 100) is necessary for election. Further, the language requiring an absolute majority of Senate votes precludes the sitting Vice President from breaking any tie which might occur.
The only time the Senate chose the Vice President was in 1837.
Deadlocked Chambers If the House of Representatives has not chosen a President-elect in time for the inauguration (noon on January 20), then Section 3 of the Twentieth Amendment specifies that the Vice President-elect becomes Acting President until the House should select a President. If the winner of the vice presidential election is also not known by then, then under the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, the sitting Speaker of the House would become Acting President until either the House should select a President or the Senate should select a Vice President. None of these situations has ever occurred.
Current electoral vote distribution The following table shows the number of electoral votes (EV) to which each state and the District of Columbia will be entitled during the 2012, 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. The numbers in parentheses (+) or (-) represent if a state gained or lost electors in comparison to the 2004 & 2008 elections based on the 2010 Census.
State EV Alabama 9 Alaska 3 Arizona 11 (+1) Arkansas 6 California 55 Colorado 9 Connecticut 7 Delaware 3 Florida 29 (+2) Georgia 16 (+1) Hawaii 4 Idaho 4 Illinois 20 (-1) Indiana 11 Iowa 6 (-1) Kansas 6 Kentucky 8 Louisiana 8 (-1) Maine 4 Maryland 10 Massachusetts 11 (-1) Michigan 16 (-1) Minnesota 10 Mississippi 6 Missouri 10 (-1) Montana 3 Nebraska 5 Nevada 6 (+1) New Hampshire 4 New Jersey 14 (-1) New Mexico 5 New York 29 (-2) North Carolina 15 North Dakota 3 Ohio 18 (-2) Oklahoma 7 Oregon 7 Pennsylvania 20 (-1) Rhode Island 4 South Carolina 9 (+1) South Dakota 3 Tennessee 11 Texas 38 (+4) Utah 6 (+1) Vermont 3 Virginia 13 Washington 12 (+1) West Virginia 5 Wisconsin 10 Wyoming 3 Washington, D.C. 3 Total electors 538
To talk about what is next, we need to look at what has recently past.
“Goodbye Two-Party System - Name a problem — poverty, war, out-of-control spending. The political parties offer themselves as the solution to all of the above, and more. We respond by voting for first one party, then the other, and then back again. We want to let the world know we are unhappy, but we haven’t yet developed the creative capacity to rearrange the world around us.
This seemingly eternal passivity is the mother’s milk of political partyism. No wonder the Republicans and Democrats and their auxiliaries — the tea parties, the unions, the media — must whip us into a frenzy. Whether we are Foxites, MSNBCists, bloggers or bored stiff, we’re now implored daily to get out to vote. Why? Not because voting develops our capacity to move the country forward. But because we must put one, or the other, or both, political parties in power — even though separately and together, they brought us to this anxious and crummy place.
This is American politics 101. The cure for whatever ails us is . . . more of the same. Public health advocates tell cautionary tales about diabetics who drink soda, people with high cholesterol who eat burgers and fries, and daughters of breast cancer victims who take hormones. But somehow, no one ever informs us that political parties — and the partisanship they spawn — have clogged our national arteries, fried our national brains and compromised the entire body politic.
But Americans are starting to move beyond the parties, even beyond partyism. That’s the dynamic story unfolding on the edges of the midterm battleground. And if that motion is cultivated by truly nonpartisan innovators, the political parties will have a comeuppance sooner than you might think. Contrary to what some analysts argue — that America is ripe for a third party — the direction Americans are really heading is away from parties’ altogether.”
Jacqueline Salit is president of IndependentVoting.org, a national association of independent voters and the Executive Editor of THE NEO-INDEPENDENT magazine.
____________________________________________
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says an unaffiliated candidate can’t win the presidency. Bloomberg told reporters that the very best an independent candidate could hope for was an electoral-vote tie, which would give final say to the House, which the GOP recaptured this month. “Party affiliation is so strong with enough people that the Republicans and Democrats — no matter who their candidates were — would get enough votes — that you could get the from independent vote, it would still not be a majority,” he said.
____________________________________________
From Ballot Access News — the twenty nine states with registration by party, plus the District of Columbia, reported in October and November 2010 that 73.5% of all voters are registered Democrats or Republicans. This is the lowest percentage for the two major parties since before 1980, and probably the lowest ever. In Alaska the Democrats and Republicans have a combined total of 41% of registered voters, meaning 59% of Alaska voters have chosen other options.
____________________________________________
Write-in votes – Lisa Murkowski is close to becoming the second Senator to win a write-in vote to be re-elected as the Senator from Alaska after losing the Republican primary.
____________________________________________
Each of these events point to the beginning of a new political process, but where will it go?
I agree with Mayor Bloomberg that an independent will have a difficult time to become President without support of Congressional members and the current winner-take-all electoral votes. I also agree with Ms. Salit that the two party political system is losing its hold with registered votes who are now split three-ways between the two major parties, and minor parties and independents.
I have worked on all three of Mayor Bloomberg's campaigns and with Ms. Salit since 2001 to encourage these structural political reforms.
You Can't Change the Political Game Unless You Change the Political Rules The following are a set of political reforms favored by many independent voters that address the institutional barriers to their participation and to greater democracy.
Open Primaries This was the year of the Open Primary. Independents flocked to vote in the primaries and established that they are an engine for a new politic. Support for open primaries is very high among independents. Polling puts it consistently at above 90%. Consequently, independents would value efforts to further institutionalize this practice. Open Primaries is a general category which has taken a number of different forms. Whatever the approach taken, open primaries would allow some 40% of American voters to participate in the critical first round of elections for public office from which closed primaries bar them. Moreover, as this year’s presidential primaries demonstrate, open primaries maximize the influence of younger voters, anti-machine voters and voters more open to change. Thirty-three states have some form of open primaries (or caucuses) at the presidential level. Only a handful has them for other federal or for state offices (though many cities have nonpartisan municipal elections, including 60 out of 75 of the nation’s largest cities as of 1991).
I believe the pure open primary where all candidates are on one primary ballot with the option of displaying the logo of their party and the logo of endorsement with the top two going to the general election is the fairest change to the current systems. This would still give the parties to ability to have their preferred selection method but also allow other party candidates to get into the game. The biggest question would be how write-in votes would be countered.
Election Administration Reform In almost all of the states elections are run by either the Secretary of State (elected as a Democrat or a Republican) or by a bipartisan Board of Elections. The Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) is bipartisan. Independents have no representation at any level. Partisan election administration can undermine the integrity of the process and hurts independents in a number of ways. Consideration must now be given to equal representation on the bodies that administer elections and/or to a system of nonpartisan (as opposed to bipartisan) election administration.
Initiative and Referendum Partisan gridlock in Washington and in many state legislatures has made policy innovation or even sound policy making a rarity. Initiative and referendum, in which citizens can directly legislate, is an effective way to break through. The open primary legislation in Washington State was passed by referendum. In Ohio, drug law reform was achieved by I&R. Some complain that I&R allows the wealthy or the right wing to control the legislative agenda. However, this presidential season – and the Obama campaign in particular – has demonstrated that an inspired citizenry will financially and politically support efforts to bring about much needed progressive change. For independents, referenda are a level playing field, an arena where their votes are as effective as those of major party members. Their power is not diluted by exclusion from party primaries or by the partisan organization of legislative bodies and committees.
States have historically functioned as laboratories of reform. I&R, now legal in 27 states in some form or fashion, contributes to this. It may even provide a model for a system of national referendum, a process that could directly engage the citizenry and build a culture of national conversation. Every voter in every state should have access to the I&R process.
Redistricting Reform In some states the dominant political party has used redistricting to minimize the possibility for electoral success of the other major party. In other states the two major parties have used it to preserve the electoral and legislative status quo. In either case, redistricting has meant the construction of “safe districts” for either Democrats or Republicans. This necessarily means blunting opportunities for new alliances to emerge in the context of congressional and other legislative elections. It also virtually rules out competition from independent forces. The redistricting process should be nonpartisan and administered in a way that the voting power of independents is not diluted.
Ballot Access Reform Discrimination against independent and minor party candidates must be eliminated. Ballot access reform bills that establish uniform ballot requirements in federal elections have languished in Congress since 1985. There is no reason not to level the playing field for all candidates for public office.
Direct Elections for the Presidency Despite lip service by some Democratic Party leaders, a move towards abolition of the Electoral College has not been seriously undertaken. As a result, in a general election for president, the solid “red” and “blue” states are often ignored because their outcomes are predetermined. This is unfair, not only to independents, but to all voters in such states. Every American’s vote should count. Another approach worth considering would be to have electoral votes in each state awarded in proportion to the popular vote. This practice was adopted in Maine.
Same Day Voter Registration A maze of state by state regulations govern the voter registration process, including cut-off dates, waiting periods, “locked boxes,” etc. Legislators often object to SDVR because, they say, if you don’t know who your eligible electorate is, you won’t know who to mail your campaign literature to. The practice of restricting voter registration supports the incumbents, but not the voter, and certainly not potential new voters. In some states, the “cut-off” date precedes the moment in the election cycle when voters start to pay attention to the choices. This is particularly true for younger voters. Given the advances in technology, there is no reason that voters should not be permitted to register on Election Day itself. What’s more, voters should have the right to re-register at the polling place after they have cast a ballot. This is the practice in New Hampshire, and it’s been vital to the state’s independents – 44% of the electorate. Recently, legislators tried to deprive them of that right and independents fought back and won – twice.
In New York we are working on Non Partisan Municipal Elections. We failed to get the Charter Revision Commission to put it on the 2010 ballot but I think it received enough support that another Commission could agree to give it a chance with the voters. But this time we need to spell out in more detail on how it could work and not affect the existing parties.
Let me know what you think our political future looks like.
It appears more states elected independents to state legislatures this year than in at least sixty years. Independents were elected to state legislators in 2010 in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Vermont. We are still waiting to see if one was elected in Colorado. Louisiana and Virginia also have independent state legislators, but those two states didn’t have legislative elections this year.
Alabama Voters elected Harri Anne Smith to the State Senate as an independent candidate. She defeated her only opponent, a Republican, by a margin of 55.2%-44.8%. She was the incumbent in the 29th district. The Republican Party had refused to let her file in this year’s Republican primary, because she had endorsed a Democrat for Congress in 2008. So, she ran as an independent, and became the first independent elected to the Alabama legislature since 1983.
Georgia Rusty Kidd, the only independent state legislator, was re-elected. He faced one opponent, a Democrat. Kidd won 57.3%-42.7%. Kidd was the only independent who was able to qualify for either house of the Georgia legislature by petition this year.
Kentucky Voters of State Senate district 2, centered on Paducah, re-elected independent State Senator Bob Leeper. Leeper was first elected to the State Senate in 1990 as a Democrat, and re-elected as as Democrat in 1994 and 1998. However, then he became a Republican and won as a Republican in 2002. Then, he became an independent and was re-elected as an independent in 2006, and now he has again won re-election as an independent.
North Carolina Bert Jones was elected to the State House of Representatives. He defeated an incumbent in a two-person race by a margin of 56.1% – 43.9%. Jones is a dentist who was formerly a Republican, but who left the party because he did not believe the Republican Party is sincerely interested in reducing the size of government. He was elected in the 65th district.
Rhode Island The voters of 17th State Senate district re-elected independent Senator Edward J. O’Neill to the State Senate. He defeated his only opponent, Democrat Linda Noble, by 54.5%-45.5. O'Neill had also been elected as an independent in 2008. When he was elected in 2008, he had been the first independent elected to the Rhode Island State Senate since 1964.
South Dakota Voters in the 15th state legislative district elected Jenna Haggar to the House. She is a registered independent, and is only 24 years old. She defeated an incumbent Democratic state representative. Haggar is the first independent elected to the South Dakota house since 1994, although South Dakota voters had elected an independent to the State Senate in 2008. However, the State Senate independent elected in 2008, Tom Dempster, was actually a registered Republican who had accidentally failed to qualify for his party’s primary ballot, so he had then petitioned as an independent.
Tennessee Voters of the 4th state house district re-elected Kent Williams as an independent candidate. He is the first person to win an election to the Tennessee legislature as an independent since 1982. He had been re-elected as a Republican in 2008. But in early 2009, when the state house was virtually tied, all the Democrats in the House had voted for Williams to be Speaker. With the votes of all the Democrats, and his own vote, Williams was elected Speaker, but then he was expelled from the Republican Party, so in 2010 he ran for re-election as an independent.
Wisconsin Voters in the 25th Assembly district elected Bob Ziegelbauer to the legislature as an independent in a 3-way race. Ziegelbauer polled approximately 50%; the Democratic nominee polled approximately 35%; and the Republican nominee polled approximately 15%. Ziegelbauer had been in the legislature as a Democrat since 1992. He became an independent because he opposes any tax increase in 2011. Ziegelbauer also serves as the elected County Executive of Manitowoc County.
Pennsylvanians may notice something unusual when they go to the polls in November: Their choices for governor, lieutenant governor, and U.S. Senate will be limited exclusively to Republican and Democratic candidates. Only four other states' 2010 general-election ballots are so restrictive.
What makes Pennsylvania unique, however - and suggests that something has gone seriously wrong here in the birthplace of America - is that the shortage of choices has been effectively imposed by the courts. The state's courts have shut out minor-party candidates by allowing Republicans and Democrats to collect large money judgments from anyone who attempts to challenge the major parties.
Use the above link to read the entire article by Oliver Hall in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The two major parties might have a loyalty pledge, but here is our independent candidate pledge:
CANDIDATE PLEDGE
I am running as an independent because I believe we need to do something about the partisanship that dominates every aspect of our political process.
The 42% of Americans who identify themselves as political independents are treated as second class citizens. The structure of our electoral system privileges the parties at the expense of the people.
I will use my campaign to promote democracy reforms that give independents the same rights as party members and break the parties’ tyranny over our democracy.
I hereby pledge to include in my campaign for public office a platform that includes support for the following:
1) Open primaries and nonpartisan elections, which allow unaffiliated voters to participate at every phase of the election process.
2) An inclusive independent movement that welcomes voters of every race and ethnicity, from every community and from all walks of life.
3) Administration of elections that is nonpartisan, rather than bipartisan, giving independents representation in the agencies that carry out this important function.
4) A nonpartisan redistricting process that insures competitive elections and fair treatment of independent voters and candidates.
5) Ballot access reform, open debates and other needed reforms that end discrimination against independents, insurgents and minor party candidates.
Independentvoting.org has been approached by numerous candidates asking for support. As a non-profit, we do not endorse candidates. However, we can post information about candidates who support the independent movement.
We've put together a series of questionnaires that outline issues important to independents.
Use the above link to find out more about the questionnaires.
As a long time member of the Independent Movement I have watched other members who have stepped out to take their place as leaders all over the US. They have become supporters of an organization that has brought these diverse independent activists together.
What is CUIP & IndependentVoting.org and what is its mission?
We are a national strategy, communications, and organizing center working to connect and empower the 40% of Americans who identify themselves as independents through (Activist Center, DVD, The Neo-Independent magazine, and Talk/Talk).
Our mission is to develop a movement of independent voters for progressive post-partisan reform of the American political process.
We do not aspire to be another special interest. Independents seek instead to diminish the regressive influence of parties and partisanship by opening up the democratic process. Independents in the CUIP networks are creating new electoral coalitions such as the Black and Independent Alliance, supporting new models of nonpartisan governance and striving for the broadest forms of “bottom-up” participation.
Independents played a decisive role in the nomination and subsequent election of President Barack Obama, whose call for a transformation of the old political culture reflected the values of many independents. More than 19 million independents – roughly the same number as voted for Ross Perot in 1992 – chose to vote for Obama in 2008. The independent movement's shift away from the politics of the right-of-center Texas billionaire Perot to the left-of-center Obama was propelled, in part, by CUIP’s grassroots activism. (See "How the Independent Movement Went Left by Going Right")
Use the above link to read about these new leaders and then check out the other features of the site.
Jefferson County, New York, which is on Lake Ontario, has been represented by a Republican in the U.S. House starting with the 1854 election, the year the Republican Party was born. However, as a result of the November 3, 2009, special election in the 23rd district, Jefferson County will be represented by Bill Owens, the Democratic nominee who appears to have won.
Jefferson County’s largest city is Watertown. In the 1852 election, Jefferson County had been its own U.S. House district, and had elected an Independent to the U.S. House. Jefferson County hadn’t been represented by a Democrat in the U.S. House since a Democrat, Willard Ives, won the 1850 election in that part of New York.
Ironically, the new Congressman in the 23rd district, Owens, is a registered independent, even though he was the Democratic nominee.
Change came to Northern Virginia yesterday with the electoral victories of two little known candidates. The first was Alicia R. Hughes, a black female candidate running as an Independent and Frank Fannon who ran as a moderate Republican. Both ran as a team seeking to wrestle power from the powerful Democrat controlled Alexandria City Council. What makes this story even more interesting is that both candidates were backed by the local Republican Party, in what appears to be a new strategy being adopted by Republican candidates in urban/cosmopolitan areas.
This type of fusion reflects what has been happening in New York City's Independence Party Organizations and the independent voter with both parties. Here we look for candidates who understand the need for changing the political structure and make it more open.
Use the above link to read the entire article by Richard Ivory on the Hip Hop Republican website.
UPDATE: On October 21, a presidential debate for candidates who are on the ballot in states containing a majority of the electoral vote was announced. It will be Thursday evening, October 23, 9 pm thru 10:30 pm, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. It is likely that C-SPAN will cover it, since both Ralph Nader and Chuck Baldwin have said they will participate. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C-SPAN will broadcast the October 19 debate between Ralph Nader, Cynthia McKinney, and Chuck Baldwin, although it is not yet known if it will be broadcast live. The debate will be Sunday evening, October 19, at Columbia University in New York city. The moderator will be Amy Goodman of Pacifica Radio. It is possible that Pacifica Radio will also broadcast it. The debate is sponsored by Free and Equal Elections.
Bob Barr declined to participate because he is scheduled to speak somewhere else that evening. According to this MSNBC story of October 14, he will be campaigning at colleges in Ohio and Virginia during the period October 14-23.
Free & Equal Elections Coalition (FREE) is a coalition of political parties, independent citizens and civic organizations formed to promote free and equal elections in the United States.
Technorati Tag in Del.icio.us 
