Round-Up: California's First "Top Two" Primary Yields Less Party Control, More Independent Participation

Media coverage of California's first "Top Two" primary last week was somewhat varied, most grumbling about how it didn't produce the results that was hoped for and locked out 3rd parties...

Notable exception from Jason Olson, an activist with IndependentVoice.org in IVN: "[Last Tuesday's] vote showed what removing party control over the elections can do. We had a primary process that was about selecting the best leader to move California forward, rather than who was the best partisan to fight for their party. [F]ive independent (“No Party Preference”) candidates running for the California Legislature placed in the “top two” of their respective races and will advance to the general election to face an incumbent. Top Two Open Primary champion Abel Maldonado (R) will also advance.

The Hankster is a strong backer of Top Two, Open Primaries and Nonpartisan Municipal Elections and has campaigned vigorously for all.

Here is a round-up of commentary on California's primary last Tuesday:

• Independent Thoughts on CA’s Primary Results (By Jason Olson, IVN) Congratulations again to the voters who supported the Top Two Open Primary and Redistricting Reform measures in past elections. Yesterday’s vote showed what removing party control over the elections can do. We had a primary process that was about selecting the best leader to move California forward, rather than who was the best partisan to fight for their party.
  
• Dems dismayed by Assembly shutout (Written by Sean Janssen, The Union Democrat) Democratic Party leaders throughout the State Assembly 5th District were in a sour mood Wednesday as their party will have no representative on the Nov. 6 ballot for the legislative seat. Though there had been a handful of special elections for vacant offices in the state since voters approved the Proposition 14 “top two” primary in November 2010, Tuesday’s primary marked the first regular statewide election using the system.
• California’s Open Primary Costs Super-PAC $711,000 on Just One Race (By Ellen Uchimiya,
  Bloomberg/ Political Capital) That cash infusion seemed to help. Brownley and Strickland advanced after Tuesday’s primary. If this had been a closed primary, Brownley would have advanced anyway… and the House Majority PAC would have saved $711,000.
• Herdt: An election to confound Will Rogers (By Timm Herdt, Ventura County Star) Parties have infrastructure. Independents, who have to build their campaigns from scratch, don't stand much of a chance of competing against that — unless, like New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, they have bottomless personal wealth.
• California's election reform flops (By Joe Mathews, LA Times) Oh, well, But give the reformers credit; they did make change. In place of our old system, we got something that preserves many of our worst political traditions — while making things a little bit worse.
• California Dreaming: Why New Election Rules Won't Help Centrists (By Josh Kraushaar, National Journal/ Hotline On Call) Two national newspapers today reach dramatically different conclusions about the impact of California's new top-two election system, which was designed to help elect more centrists and undermine the party primary system that had long been in place. The New York Times concludes the open, non partisan primary served as a "splash of cold water" to those reformers who thought it would "bring a new wave of independent candidates and voters." The Wall Street Journal concluded the system worked, because finalists "now must search for support from independents and voters in other parties." Who's right?
• California Centrists See Their Stock Rise Open-Primary Results Show That Finalists Now Must Search for Support From Independents and Voters in Other Parties (By JIM CARLTON and JUSTIN SCHECK, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal) The state still leans heavily Democratic, with 43% of voters registered as Democrats in April, compared with 30% as Republicans and 21% with no party preference—up from 14% who said they were impartial 12 years ago. Appealing to those in the middle now becomes more crucial for candidates like Lois Capps, a liberal-leaning Democratic congresswoman from the state's Central Coast. Before, she rarely needed to reach out to conservative Republicans, said Bill Carrick, her campaign strategist. But after a centrist Republican named Abel Maldonado challenged her in a runoff, Mr. Carrick said Ms. Capps would reach out to the GOP base.
• Fletcher: No regrets after loss about leaving GOP (By JULIE WATSON, Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle) New York Times columnist David Brooks called his bid a nationwide test case on whether it's possible to succeed as an independent alternative. That didn't happen Tuesday.
• California’s Nonpartisan Primary Shows Independents to Be in Short Supply (By JENNIFER MEDINA, New York Times) David Wasserman, who analyzes House races for The Cook Political Report, called the outcome in San Bernardino a “freak political accident,” particularly because President Obama is likely to win the area by as much as a double-digit margin.
• California electoral reforms yield no big changes (By JULIET WILLIAMS, Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle) Voters mostly rejected the independent and moderate candidates that the changes were intended to bolster to reduce partisanship, instead sending nearly every state legislative and congressional incumbent forward to runoffs in November, in some cases against opponents in their own party. A few races remained too close to call Wednesday.
• How California’s Top-Two Open Primary Shrinks Voter Choice in Congressional Races in November (Ballot Access News) The San Francisco Chronicle’s story about the election returns is that the top-two system “shook up the system.” Actually, in every single congressional race in which one incumbent was running, that incumbent came in first. In the races with two incumbents running against each other due to redistricting, one of the incumbents always came in first and the other incumbent always came in second. As has been shown in Louisiana and Washington, top-two systems make it far easier for incumbents to be re-elected than normal systems do.
• Shift in voting rules shakes up primary elections (Carla Marinucci, San Francisco Chronicle) Californians were also voting for the first time for candidates vying to represent legislative and congressional districts drawn up not by gerrymandering politicians or the courts, but by a citizens' commission - the result of a ballot measure that voters passed in 2008, Proposition 11. Stark was one of several incumbents once considered invincible and now thought to be in danger of losing their jobs in redrawn districts.
• California voters mixed about new top-two primary (By Jim Sanders, Sac Bee) The new system also gives more clout to no-party-preference voters, whose ranks have jumped from 10.7 percent of California's electorate in 1996 to 21.3 percent today. Republican Abel Maldonado of Santa Maria, as a state senator, forced the top-two primary onto the 2010 ballot by making it one of several demands to Democratic legislative leaders in return for his pivotal vote to end an 81-day budget impasse in 2009.
• Independent Overview: CA Primary Preliminary Results (By Damon Eris, IVN) With 100% of precincts now reporting, it appears that California’s first statewide test of its new top two open primary system did not result in higher levels of voter turnout, as had been predicted by supporters of the system. Indeed, this primary election may be noteworthy for its historically low voter turnout in a presidential election year. Preliminary reports indicate that voter turnout across the state hovered in the 30-35% range, with the vast majority of eligible voters opting to stay home rather than head to the polls.
• California primary results: GOP catches a ‘top-two’ break (Posted by Aaron Blake, Washington Post/The Fix by Chris Cillizza) House Republicans got a big break under California’s new primary system Tuesday, after Democrats failed to get a candidate into the general election for Rep. Gary Miller’s (R-Calif.) swing district.
• As We See It: The independent party's over (EDITORIAL Santa Cruz Sentinel) California voters sent a crushing message to minor parties in 2010 when they approved the open primary for Tuesday's election. Because the new system sends the top two finishers in state races, regardless of party affiliation, onto the November ballot, this effectively ends the chances of the Green, Libertarian, American Independent and Peace and Freedom parties in those elections… Third parties nationally and minor parties in California have a purpose: To bring independent ideas and candidates to public attention. Their presence has been severely diminished, and it's a loss.
• Brad Breithaupt: Third parties left out of new 'top-two' primary (By Brad Breithaupt, Marin Independent Journal) With a dozen candidates running for Congress and seven vying for Assembly, voters hardly were denied a choice on the June 5 ballot. There was a variety of experience and politics to choose from, even though most of the candidates were Democrats.

Hankster News of the Day for Independents - May 29

Today's picks on the independent political scene:

• The Buzz: Independent Voter Project urging 'nones' to vote on June 5 (By Bee staff) The Independent Voter Project, which wrote the measure leading to the new top-two primary, is mailing fliers and using social media to urge people with no party preference to vote on June 5. One flier pictures two men smoking cigars and says, "Political bosses made their choices" and "you were not involved." It adds, "This time you're invited … the new open primary puts you in charge." The flier was sent to about 250,000 Californians who listed no party preference when they registered to vote, said Steve Peace, a former state legislator and chairman of the Independent Voter Project.
• Top-two primary affects Assembly race - Two Republicans are certain to face-off in November (Written by Christopher Cadelago, UT San Diego News) Under the old partisan primary system, these candidates likely would be motivated to appeal to the Republican core to win their party’s nomination for the November election. But all voters can now vote for any candidate.
• Linda Parks Tops IVN Survey of Independent Voters in CD-26 (By Kymberly Bays, IVN) The results are in for the IVN Independent Voter Survey in California’s 26th Congressional District. Over a thousand voters participated in the first of its kind demonstration project. The election was by secret ballot, conducted by Everyone Counts, the international leader in online election technology.
• Massachusetts Senate Race to Be Decided by Independent Voters (By Michael Abrams, IVN) Most significant, however, is Massachusetts’s voter demographics: more than half the state’s voters are registered independents. With Warren a dream-candidate for the States’ liberals, and Brown conservative enough for most establishment Republicans, the race has become a brawl for the independent vote.
• Donald Trump and Mitt Romney's Kiss of Death to Black and Independent Voters (Black Star News Editorial) Gingrich and Trump are the last people Romney wants to embrace if he's serious about reaching level-headed Black voters and many Independents as well who repudiate race-baiting. Gingrich famously referred to President Obama as the "welfare president." It was his desperate appeal to racists, including some in the Tea Party, who have never forgiven voters for electing Barack Obama as the country's first Black president. 
• 2012 Election: King gift to Obama draws fire from rivals - The independent donated to Democrats before he became a candidate for the U.S. Senate. (By Colin Woodard, Morning Sentinel)
• Gay marriage? Bullying? Voters don’t care. (Posted by Chris Cillizza, Washington Post/The Fix) In a brand spanking new Washington Post-ABC News national poll, 56 percent of registered voters said that Obama’s stance on gay marriage would not be a major factor in their vote. Fifty seven percent of independents said the same.
• Romney Handily Winning Independent Voters (by Bryan Schott, UTAH POLICY) The Hill notes that in 12 of the last 14 major polls taken about the 2012 race, Romney has an average lead among independent voters over Barack Obama of 6.5%. That's despite a national lead for Obama in 8 of those 14 polls.
• Brazile: Not the year of the third party (By Donna Brazile/Syndicated columnist, MetroWest Daily News) Then, from the center, came Americans Elect, an ambitious organization that spent $35 million dollars and accomplished the impressive feat of registering in 29 states. It received a lot of favorable publicity, as well as respectful recognition from credible political writers.
• Kelly's Tenure Divides the Mayoral Contenders (By MICHAEL HOWARD SAUL, Wall Street Journal) Two Democrats—Bill Thompson, a former city comptroller, and John Liu, the current comptroller—said they wouldn't keep Mr. Kelly at 1 Police Plaza. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who leads in mayoral polls, and Tom Allon, a long-shot, have signaled they would. And two others—Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer—won't say, though both have expressed deep concerns about some of Mr. Kelly's policies, most notably the street tactic known as "stop and frisk."
• NY-8: "An Evolution Of Charles Barron"? (BY Celeste Katz, NY Daily News/ Daily Politics) I spoke at some length with Brooklyn City Councilman Charles Barron and DC 37 Political Director Wanda Williams about the union's decision to go with him over Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries in the battle for the NY-8 Congressional endorsement. 
• Romney’s plan seems certain to hasten privatization of public schools systems (BY Valerie Strauss, The Washington Post, In Salt Lake Tribune) If you don’t like Obama’s agenda, you might like Romney’s even less. A Chance For Every Child is the education program that the presumptive Republican presidential nominee spelled out in a speech and a white paper released Wednesday. Romney is advancing a pro-choice, pro-voucher, pro-states-rights education program that seems certain to hasten the privatization of the public education system. In a Romney-run education world, the parents of poor and special-education students would choose a school - public or private, based on standardized test scores and other data - and then a specific amount of public money would follow the child to the school.
• Red Mind, Blue Mind: Are There Really Any Independents? (Wray Herbert, Author "On Second Thought: Outsmarting Your Mind's Hard-Wired Habits", Huffington Post) As Hawkins reported this week at the annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science, in Chicago, self-proclaimed Independents are not as independent-minded as they claim they are. In fact, Independents vary greatly in their unconscious partisanship, and they make partisan political judgments in line with their implicit political identities.

California Independent Voter Organization Endorses Candidates for Congress in June "Top Two" Primary

Group says independent voters and their concerns about broken government key to election

IndependentVoice.Org, a statewide organization representing the interests of California's 3.6 million independent voters, today announced its endorsements of Congressional candidates Stacey Lawson (Democrat, 2nd District), Linda Parks (independent, 26th District), and Abel Maldonado (Republican, 24th District) for the June 5, 2012 primary. The candidates were selected based on their support for political reforms that empower independent voters like the open primary and redistricting reform.

“Independent voters will be an influential factor in many of California’s Congressional races for the first time in over a decade,” said Jason Olson, the Director of IndependentVoice.Org.

“Independent voters span the spectrum from conservative to moderate to liberal, but are unified around their belief that partisanship has broken our government and we have to fix it if we want to move the country forward. We’re proud to stand with candidates who support the kinds of reforms necessary – like open primaries and redistricting reform – that take power away from the political parties and return it to the people.”

The June 5, 2012 primary marks the debut of the open “top-two” primary where all voters – including independents (now referred to as “No Party Preference” voters) – are able to participate and vote for any candidate they choose. The two candidates receiving the highest number of votes then advance to a “run-off” style election in November. It also marks the introduction of election districts drawn by an independent commission rather than politicians in the State Legislature. IndependentVoice.Org was a key proponent in passing both changes via voter approved measures in 2008 and 2010 and is part of the national independent movement pushing for these changes around the country.

Abel Maldonado, a Republican who formerly served as Lt. Governor and a State Legislator, is running in the 24th Congressional District in Santa Barbara County. Maldonado’s budget deal in the State Legislature put the top two open primary on the 2010 ballot and he worked with IndependentVoice.Org for its passage. “I put the top-two open primary on the 2010 ballot, and I’m proud to have stood with IndependentVoice.Org to give 3.6 million independent voters the right to participate fully in our elections process,” said Maldonado. “I’m eager to help take these reforms across the country if elected as the Congressional Representative from the 24th District.”

Stacey Lawson, a Democrat, a businesswoman and first time candidate, is running in the 2nd Congressional District in the North Coast area. "I’ve worked to bring people from all sides of an issue together to get things done – that’s how I’ve been able to create hundreds of jobs and help small businesses grow," said Lawson. "Creating high-wage jobs and rebuilding the middle class is not a partisan issue. I look forward to working with independent voters and all Californians to put America back to work."

Linda Parks, a longtime member of the Ventura County Board of Supervisors recently re-registered as an independent voter in order to run for Congress in the 26th District. Parks  recently won the endorsement of the Los Angeles Times, and many political observers feel that she has the best chance of any independent Congressional candidate in the country to win her race. “We need to end the divisive partisan politics that is gripping our country and damaging our economy,” said Parks. “The polarization in Washington is not only hurting our nation, it is also hurting our future, and the way to stop it is simple. We need to elect people to Congress who will work with both political parties.”

Olson said IndependentVoice.Org was hoping to expand its candidate education and endorsement process in the general election. “With all the new changes empowering independents, this is an important pilot test to show what these reforms could mean for the rest of the country. We’re excited about these endorsements, and we’re already thinking about how to expand the influence of independent voters in the second round of elections.”


Joyce Dattner, Chair of independentvoice.org, congratulates California voters on passage of Prop 14 in 2010, giving independents the vote in the primaries