Hankster News of the Day for Independent Voters - July8

ARIZONA OPEN PRIMARIES

• Brewer cancels Legislature's special session (Mary Jo Pitzl, The Republic/azcentral.com) The action, or lack thereof, means the Open Elections/Open Government initiative -- if it qualifies -- will not have to share space on the November ballot with a competing measure. Designed to draw Arizona's growing ranks of independent voters to the polls during primary elections, the measure would allow candidates to run without party labels. If a candidate decides to list a party, it would have to match his or her voter registration form. The option of not listing party affiliation troubled Brewer and some lawmakers.
• CAPE PAC Reaches Out to Independents in Arizona (PRESS RELEASE PRNewswire) "Unfortunately many of these Independent voters don't realize their rights and that they can still get out and vote for whomever they choose. Our efforts are aimed at helping to spread the word with Independents in Arizona about what a great Senator Jeff Flake will make. We hope to keep a seat in Arizona for the Republican Party, and help Flake become a strong, fiscal Conservative voice for The Grand Canyon State in the years to come," Loyd said.

OHIO REDISTRICTING
Amendment would put Ohio politics back on right path (by Joe Hallett is senior editor at The Dispatch, OPINION Columbus Dispatch) A group of advocates from the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, the Ohio Council of Churches, Citizen Action, the NAACP and other organizations appear to have gathered enough signatures to put before voters an amendment to change the way congressional and legislative districts are drawn.

CALIFORNIA INDEPENDENTS FEEL THE HEAT
California voters don't like midyear cuts targeting education, Field Poll finds (Associated Press, MERCURY NEWS) Opposition to the so-called "trigger cuts" is greatest among Democrats -- 79 percent -- but 68 percent of independent voters and 65 percent of Republicans also oppose it, according to the poll.

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• This year, more Americans celebrate Independence Day as independents (Amy E. Black/The Christian Science Monitor in Alaska Dispatch) This July 4th, as Americans celebrate Independence Day, a different type of independence is growing in size and influence – political independents, those voters who choose not to align with either major party. A recent Pew Research Center poll captured headlines with its report that the divide between Democrats and Republicans is widening into a significant gulf. That's indeed noteworthy, but the data reveal an equally important political development that risks getting overlooked. A record-high 38 percent of Americans now describe themselves as independents.
• Gallop Poll- 50% Of US Hispanics Identify as Independent Voters (Hispanically Speaking News) A majority of U.S. Hispanics identify as political independents (51%) rather than as Democrats (32%) or Republicans (11%). However, once their partisan leanings are taken into account, most Hispanics affiliate with the Democratic Party (52%) rather than the Republican Party (23%). Both sets of numbers shift more decisively in the Democrats’ favor among the roughly half of U.S. Hispanics who are registered to vote.
• Still Waiting For That Declaration Of Independents (by Ken Rudin, NPR/Political junkie with Ken Rudin) This year a different approach was made. This time, an organization provided not a candidate but a mechanism for one to get on the ballot. Americans Elect raised millions of dollars and already attained ballot access in 28 states (on its way to all 50 states plus D.C.), asking supporters to draft a candidate online. The problem? No "big name" came forward to run, and the leading online candidate, GOP dropout Buddy Roemer, failed to get the 10,000 signatures that Americans Elect demanded. The organization and its effort folded in May. While many third parties appear on the November ballots, some states have tougher ballot access laws than others. (Check out Richard Winger's Ballot Access News for the most reliable updates.)
• Independents thrilled with neither Obama, Romney health reform plans (Posted by CNN's Gregory Wallace) Only one in four independent voters approve of Romney's plans and only two in five approve of Obama's plans, according to the ABC News/Washington Post poll released on Tuesday. It is the third major national poll conducted and released since the landmark Supreme Court ruling on Obama's law last Thursday.
• Half of Hispanic voters identify as independent rather than partisan (Posted by Kate Riley, Seattle Times) About 51 percent of Hispanic voters identified themselves as political independents in a Gallup poll released Monday. Meanwhile, about 32 percent identified themselves as Democrats and only 11 percent as Republicans.  NOTE: SEE GALLUP ABOVE
• Half of U.S. Hispanics Identify as Political Independents - But more than half identify as or lean Democratic (by Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup.com) PRINCETON, NJ -- A majority of U.S. Hispanics identify as political independents (51%) rather than as Democrats (32%) or Republicans (11%). However, once their partisan leanings are taken into account, most Hispanics affiliate with the Democratic Party (52%) rather than the Republican Party (23%). Both sets of numbers shift more decisively in the Democrats' favor among the roughly half of U.S. Hispanics who are registered to vote.
• Independent Voters and The Legacy of 1776 (By Timothy Troutner, IVN) In the midst of Independence Day fireworks, picnics, and barbecues earlier this week, our culture celebrated our political system. Our Founding Fathers made us free, so we celebrate our current system of democracy. The implication is that the system we have now is what the Founders envisioned, and– by corollary– that those who are critical of the system are unpatriotic. The fact is that our current system is not what the men who authored the Declaration of Independence had in mind, and that independent voters are following the true legacy of 1776.