Hankster News of the Day for Independent Voters - June 18

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Obama Could Lose Independent Voters This Time (Posted by JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief, The Moderate Voice) So Obama has to win these voters back — and the issue is clearly the economy. There’s an opening, too, for Romney if he can build on the general impression voters have of him as a good businessman, and “make voters feel comfortable that he’s not going to dismantle everything we have,” says Hart, when it comes to health care and other social support programs. And this anecdotal finding has to be the most utterly devastating one at all for Obama — something he’ll need to fix soon (if he can)
• As Oklahoma’s June 26 primary nears, GOP and Independents surge, Democrats’ registration advantage continues to erode (Patrick B. McGuigan, CapitolBeatOK) Ziriax’s staff has unveiled new data for the Sooner State’s 2,030,073 registered voters. In all 46.45 percent of voters are Democrats, 46.45 percent of the total. Republican strength is now nearly 42 percent of the electorate – 851,759 voters, or 41.96 percent of the total. Independents are 11.59 percent of voters, a total of 235,321.
• In Focus Group, Independent Voters Souring on Obama (by Eleanor Clift, The Daily Beast) “The whole platform was hope—I don’t feel any more hope today,” he said. Pressed by Hart as to which candidate he was leaning toward, Jeffrey said the tenor of the campaign turned him off, that he felt like he was in the middle of a weird argument between a husband and wife, and all he wanted to do was leave the room. “I don’t even know if I’m going to vote this time,” he said glumly.
• Politics over democracy (By the Sierra Vista Herald) Once again we find the Arizona Legislature at odds with both the principles of the Republican party and putting its priority on political power over democratic representation...
• Redistricting Primer: Why New Lines Matter in Battle for House Control (By: Christina Bellantoni, PBS News Hour) The decennial redistricting phenomenon might sound boring, but it's not. Roll Call's longtime politics editor Lauren Whittington tried to convince me of that when I first joined the paper as her deputy in 2010. I was doubtful at first, but it turned out she was right.
• Let voters have a say in redistricting reform (By DICK DADEY, Commentary, Albany Times Union) Opportunities to enact redistricting reform have been squandered time and again, regardless of which party controlled the state Senate. Despite 184 legislators claiming to support an independent process for 2012, we learned that for too many legislators, where they stood on the issue of redistricting reform depended more on where they sat — in the majority or the minority — than on any true desire for reform. Had an independent redistricting commission been in place before lines were drawn, with appointees balanced among the four legislative leaders, we might not have seen the partisan action of the state Senate increasing its size to 63 seats or drawing lines that divide minority communities on Long Island.
• The Wrong Way to Fix California (Steven Greenhut, Bloomberg/View) California desperately needs courageous leaders with innovative ideas. Unfortunately, the new “top two” primary system, which went into effect for the June 5 election, is a step toward rewarding careerist politicians who tout the same old status-quo solutions.
• INDEPENDENT SPARK FLARES AT BALLOT BOX (By Ted Waitt,UT- San Diego NOTE: This article ran on IVN 6/14/12) A vote for an independent candidate is no longer mere symbolism. icPurple.org congratulates California’s courageous independent candidates Linda Parks, Chad Condit, Chad Walsh and Nathan Fletcher. Through each of their campaigns, these leaders proved one common reality: Independent, nonparty candidates are now legitimate competitors in American politics. The “centrist majority” has been awakened, and the match has been struck. Each race from California’s June 5 primary election tells this story in a different way: In the case of Chad Walsh for California Assembly, Walsh will advance to the November general election by pulling a truly remarkable showing of 45 percent of votes against his entrenched party opponent, a longtime politician with enormous name identification.
• King wants pledge against superPACS - Other candidates give cool response (By Tom Bell, Kennebec Journal) Maine's U.S. Senate candidates apparently won't follow the example being set in Massachusetts' high-profile Senate race for diminishing the influence of third-party groups. Independent candidate Angus King sent a letter to his five opponents Wednesday morning asking them to forgo the benefit of expenditures made by outside organizations on their behalf.
• DSCC chairwoman won’t say which Maine Senate candidate she backs (By Josh Lederman, The Hill/Ballot Box) Democrats continue to play coy about their plans in Maine, where former Gov. Angus King — an independent — is the early front-runner in the race. Snowe’s unexpected announcement in February that she would retire created Democrats’ strongest pickup opportunity — until King jumped into the race. Both parties suspect King will caucus with Democrats if elected, but King has adamantly refused to telegraph his intentions. His decision could determine the balance of power in a closely divided Senate in 2013.
• Candidate Steve Woods Offers Endorsement to Angus King (By Steve Woods For US Senate, Sac Bee) teve Woods, an Independent candidate now certified to appear on the November 6th, election ballot for the United States Senate representing Maine, announced today that he will be joining Angus King in publically stating that he will not play the "spoiler" in the November election.
• Maine Senate Race Scrambled by Strong Independent Candidate (ABC News, Elizabeth Hartfield) Two candidates emerged victorious from a crowded field in Maine’s Senate primary on Tuesday. Republicans nominated Charlie Summers, the Secretary of State, from a group of six potential candidates, and Democrats nominated Cynthia Dill, a state Senator from the South Portland area, from a group of four potential candidates. But the frontrunner is generally considered to be Angus King, a former governor who is running as an Independent.
• Independent voters on the rise nationwide (The Oklahoman Editorial) However, in Oklahoma voters are moving to the Republican Party more than they are to independent status. Democrat numbers are declining. As of June 1, around 46 percent of Oklahoma voters were Democrats, nearly 42 percent were Republicans and 11 percent were independents.

Hankster News of the Day for Independent Voters June 14

OBAMA IN PA

• Women, Indies give Obama PA lead in new poll (Philadelphia Inquirer) In Tuesday’s poll, women back Obama 51 percent to 36 percent in Pennsylvania, while men narrowly favor Romney, 44 percent to 40 percent. Obama is leading 43 percent to 35 percent among independent voters, the poll finds.
• June 12, 2012 - Women Give Obama 6-Point Lead In Pennsylvania, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Gov. Corbett Job Approval At Lowest Point Ever (Quinnipiac) With strong support from women and independent voters, President Barack Obama leads Gov. Mitt Romney 46 - 40 among Pennsylvania voters, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Romney would do a better job on the economy, voters say 49 - 41 percent.
• Quinnipiac: Obama up 6 in Pennsylvania (By ALEXANDER BURNS, Politico/ Burns & Haberman) Winning women by a big margin, leveraging likability, keeping the jobs debate close — that's the formula we've repeatedly seen in polls that show the president ahead. Of course, Pennsylvania is also a Democratic-leaning state, so Obama can accomplish all those goals and still end up in a toss-up race in a place like, say, Virginia.

CALIFORNIA INDEPENDENTS
Independent Voters Crucial To SD Mayor Race -- Movement To The Middle Group Endorsed Independent Candidate Nathan Fletcher (10 News - San Diego) In April, a group of local businessmen and women announced they were changing their political affiliation to independent. This came after Fletcher left the Republican Party.

MAINE INDEPENDENTS
Maine independent out to shake up U.S. Senate -- Former Gov. Angus King is bringing a stridently anti-partisan message to the battle for control of the U.S. Senate — and going into Tuesday's primary, polls show he's leading all potential rivals. (By Ed O'Keefe, The Washington Post in Seattle Times) It will depend on the terms, however. "What does 'join a caucus' mean? Does it mean casting one vote to organize the Senate and then you're on your own? Or does it mean you have to truly join the caucus, go to the meetings and participate fully or you lose your committee assignments?" he asked. "How the parties handle that with me is going to have a significant influence on my decision." And if a voter insists he needs to pick a party before November, King said, "I'll tell them to vote for someone else."

NEW YORK INDEPENDENTS

• NY’s conservative triumph (New York Post) Tonight [Wednesday], the nation’s most successful third party, the Conservative Party of New York, celebrate its 50th anniversary with a gala dinner at the Sheraton in Manhattan.
• Meng Joins Vallone To Go After ‘Untouchable’ Antennas (John Toscano, Queens Gazette) State Independence Party Chairman Frank MacKay said in his endorsement of Ulrich: “He has been an outstanding representative in the city council and I know he will take the same independent leadership to Albany.”… Halloran stated, “I ask the president to take time away from his busy schedule raising thousands to actually address the issues that New York City faces. But I’m sure that he’ll spend his time on Broadway raking in cash from Manhattan elites instead of crossing the bridges into the outer boroughs.”

LAST WORD - STUDYING INDEPENDENTS IN OHIO AND PENNSYLVANIA 
Shifting the Economic Narrative (Democracy Corps - Carville Greenberg Focus Group) With the economy faltering, we conducted fairly open-ended focus groups among white non-college-educated voters in Columbus, Ohio and college-educated suburban voters in suburban Philadelphia.  We excluded strong partisans from both camps.  These were all independents or weak partisans and ticket-splitters—swing independent voters—and the groups included an even mix of 2008 Obama and McCain voters.

Hankster News of the Day for Independent Voters June 13: Open Primaries Wave of the Future

Bill Hillsman should campaign for open primaries...



CALIFORNIA TOP TWO
Judgment still awaits on 'Top Two' primary success (MODESTO BEE) This was a low-turnout primary. For that and other reasons, we won't know if redistricting reform and "top two" will produce lasting and worthwhile change for several election cycles. But it will be interesting to watch — another reason for voters to pay attention.

MAINE OPEN PRIMARY
OUR OPINION: Primary system needs to reflect political reality - Most Maine voters unenrolled, independent candidates routine (Kennebec Journal) Maine could benefit from an open primary system that makes the final vote a race between two candidates, with the winner getting more than half the vote.

WHY BILL HILLSMAN SHOULD…
California Top Two Primary Roundup – Quotables from the Political Media (Independent Voters of America)
NOTE: Top article here is Jason Olson's Independent Thoughts on CA's Primary Results on IVN

Maine: Eliot Cutler and Americans Elect

Independent Just Like Maine

MAINE
Cutler seeks to shake up presidential race (By David Carkhuff, The Portland Daily Sun) Today, Cutler is a board member for Americans Elect, a national group spearheading an online nominating process that aims to give voters the power to choose a presidential candidate in 2012. Cutler seeks to shake up presidential race.

OneMaine

Those of you who know me personally or have read enough of my writing know that I am nothing if not fiercely independent.  That means that not only do I not always vote for one party in elections, it also means that I strongly support maintaining my right to be independent, not affiliated with any political party; therefore, not having pressure from my chosen party to go along with something I disagree with.
Sometimes I find it important to vote for Independents to make a point, although usually I vote for Independents because I believe in what they stand for, and always support issues that make it easier for independents to get involved in politics or make it easier for all of us to vote, such as open primaries.
Aside from voting for an Independent, it can often be difficult for an independent like myself to find organizations to support who stand for the same things.  Well, there is an organization now here in Maine called OneMaine, founded and chaired by Eliot Cutler, who you'll remember I wrote about and supported during his run for Governor last year (very nearly winning and becoming our third Independent Governor).  He founded this organization to attempt to bring under one roof all the people in Maine who are of like mind about having less partisanship and more cooperation in our politics for the benefit of the people of Maine.  From the OneMaine website:

OneMaine provides a rallying point for people who think for themselves, who believe that our politics need to be more effective and less partisan, and who care less about parties and more about common interests and shared purpose. We are not a political party, but rather a big tent in which Mainers of all stripes – Democrats, Republicans, Greens and unenrolled, independent voters – can collaborate, share ideas and move Maine forward.

Mr. Cutler helped establish this organization following last year's gubernatorial election to try to take advantage of the independent momentum of that campaign and to provide a place for disparate people with a common goal of the best interests of Mainers.
I would encourage you to support OneMaine (you can start at the link above or like them on Facebook) or to look for like organizations if you live outside of Maine.  There are many of you out there like myself who have always been independent and have looked for a place to get involved without joining a party.  Now you have that place.
The other day I sent an email to OneMaine asking if they'd be so kind as to give me a progress update on OneMaine that I could share with you.  Kaitlin LaCasse, the media relations director, was gracious enough to get right back to me with the following:

"So far, the response to OneMaine has been fantastic. When we launched in Bangor a few months ago, over 75 people attended to learn more about OneMaine and to have a conversation about how to best move the organization forward. Since then, we've held events all around the state, and the enthusiasm for OneMaine continues to amaze me. At our Portland event (where there were over 100 people!), an older gentleman came up to me after and said, "thank you, I've been yearning for something like this." The best part is that the man hadn't ever connected with us before - he had read about the event in the paper and decided to come check it out! So, OneMaine continues to grow and mature and we're excited about the potential."
 Thank you!
 Kaitlin

 Cross-posted at Inside Zebster

Maine Voters Keep Election Day Registration

MAINE ELECTION RESULTS

• Mainers vote to continue Election Day registration (By Eric Russell, Bangor Daily News) Question 1 asked: “Do you want to reject the section of Chapter 399 of the Public Laws of 2011 that requires new voters to register to vote at least two business days prior to an election?” With more than three-quarters of the state’s precincts reporting early Wednesday morning, the yes side was leading 60 percent to 40 percent and had declared victory. The yes side was prevailing in every county, with especially lopsided results in Portland and Bangor.
• VOTING RIGHTS LANDSLIDE, MAINE REBUKES GOP, But bad news for Mississippi voters... (By Brad Friedman, Brad Blog) The People's Veto of the GOP bill was on the ballot tonight and, if the results are accurate as reported, the people of Maine couldn't have been clearer. Question 1 has is said to have passed by a remarkable 61 to 39% margin (with 90% of the results in), quite literally winning in every single county in the state...
• "We spoke with one voice:" Mainers vote to keep Election Day registration (By Steve Mistler, Sun Journal - Lewiston) According to unofficial results, the coalition that worked to restore EDR held a large lead over the groups that sought to repeal the law. With more than half of the state's 594 precincts reporting, voters favored retaining EDR, 60 percent to 40 percent.

VOTE YES ON Question One in Maine: The Zebster is BAAAAck!!

UPDATE:

Vote Yes on Question 1

Guess Who's Back?

It's The Zebster!

Yay!

It's voting day in Maine and

This ties in to Question One that we are voting on here in Maine.  Voting yes would overturn a law the Legislature enacted requiring people to register at least two days before voting day.  I can tell you that that would have impacted yours truly today because I moved less than a year ago.  Under the new law I would have had to make two trips, one of them completely unnecessary, just to be able to exercise my right to vote as a United States citizen and a resident of the State of Maine.  The more difficult they make it for you to be able to vote, the harder it is for you to use your vote to keep them under control.  Don't EVER let them start because it's always been difficult for some reason, here in the Land of the Free, to ensure that we all have our rights.

Independent Redistricting in a Partisan World Uphill Battle

REDISTRICTING

• Redistricting now in Salt Lake County Council’s hands (By Jeremiah Stettler, The Salt Lake Tribune) Mayor Peter Corroon, a Democrat, considers the redistricting plans well-crafted. “The nonpartisan commission presented three viable options,” Corroon said, “a true demonstration of working for people not politics.”
• Editorial: Independent redistricting panel up to citizens (Athens GA Banner-Herald) Clearly, then, what it will take to make an independent redistricting commission a reality in Georgia is a broad-based grassroots movement. Even those citizens who favor the party currently in power have an interest -- albeit it might not readily be apparent to them -- in having district lines drawn based on a "communities of interest" standard.
• California's redistricting, by 14 citizens (By Cynthia Dai, LA Times) Predictably, some people aren't happy with our final decisions. Politicians and political parties that no longer have the same safe districts wish we'd drawn different lines. But there are procedures for dissenters to voice their concerns at the ballot box or in the courts.
• Maine Redistricting Dispute Could be Headed for Court (Reported By: A.J. Higgins, Maine Public Broadcasting Network) Republicans and Democrats on a 15-member Reapportionment Commission continued to disagree today on a plan to redraw the political boundaries of the state's 1st and 2nd Congressional districts. Commission Chairman Michael Friedman, the sole politically unaffiliated member from Bangor, ended the stalemate by siding with the Democrats. Now both proposals go to the Legislature--and possibly the Supreme Court for a final ruling.
• Redistricting committee still stuck in partisan rut, so Legislature to decide issue (By Eric Russell, Bangor Daily News) Michael Friedman: “I couldn’t get the donkey and the elephant to move a stitch, even though I tried. But I remain an optimist because whatever happens today, it’s not the end of the road.”
• Editorial: IRC ignoring rural districts (The Daily Courier - Prescot AZ) In this space we have supported efforts to de-politicize the process in hopes of creating more competitive and more representative districts. It should not be so difficult to create districts in which the representative - state or federal - would have to think about balance, both politically and remembering rural concerns. Proof of this disconnect is found in the state Independent Redistricting Commission's public outreach meetings. No members of the IRC attended the commission's meeting in Flagstaff. Not one.
• Pinal congressional, legislative districts need to shrink - Hispanic group favors similar 4th, 7th lines (By HAROLD KITCHING, TriValleyCentral) The Independent Redistricting Commission, mandated by a voter initiative in 2000 to take the redrawing away from politicians, has adopted basic congressional and legislative maps as a starting point, based on equal population and compactness and continuousness.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

Independent voters moving left

Nobody really likes Joe Lieberman

Louisiana Repubs move to reject independents -- until 2006, LA had an open primary system...

Bill introduced in Maine state legislature to designate "unenrolled" as "independent

South Dakota state legislature closes primaries to indies

The Moderate Voice has a great round-up of press on Obama's press conference on the economic stimulus plan...

Lessons on "bi-partisanship" -- HINT: It's still partisan...

Conservative press presses indies' declining support of stimulus pkg

Obama's independent nonpartisan dream doesn't register with media...

New York state legislature considers un-fusion bill...

Libertarian to run for Kristen Gillibrand's seat...

Partisan control of New York state politics, from the top to the top...

Does Mayor Bloomberg have anywhere to turn???

Maine: Fusion voting?

But that argument does not hold in New York, because in New York minor parties are allowed to nominate one of the major party candidates as their candidate as well -- and the votes cast for that candidate on any party lines on which his or her name appears are added to that candidate's total vote.
The procedure is called fusion or open ballot voting -- and the WFP is attempting to have it made law in Maine and many other states. Those who favor third parties as an alternative to the major parties should favor such a change -- and even someone like me, someone with grave reservations about third parties, sees positive aspects of this way of counting votes... (Kennebec Journal)