Hankster News of the Day for Independents May 22

MORNING READ

Most mornings The Hankster brings you the top news articles from mainstream media and the blogosphere that independent activists need to read. The title of the article contains the link to the original, followed by the author and publication, and then a snipit from the article. You can subscribe to this briefing by email at FeedBlitz or choose your favorite newsreader... Here's today's picks:

• Black conservatives and gay marriage (By Robert Smith Jr., Detroit News/Opinion) The only person of color before President Barack Obama to really run for the office of president of the United States was Lenora Fulani. She was on the ballot in all 50 states. Cain, Jackson, nor Sharpton ran for anything but publicity. They got television shows and book deals.
• California Independent Voter Organization Endorses Candidates for Congress in June "Top Two" Primary (The Hankster) 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.
• W.Va. could add hurdles to primary ballot (Lawrence Messina, RealClearPolitics) Only a handful of states don't require petition signatures for at least certain categories of candidates, said Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News. For 27 years, Winger has tracked legislation, court rulings and other developments in this area. West Virginia mandates signatures for third-party and independent candidates running for president, Congress and statewide office, a standard that does not affect the primaries of the state's recognized political parties.
• 'Fatally flawed': Why third parties still fail despite voter anger (By Kevin Liptak, CNN) Most Americans have probably never heard of Americans Elect. But as polls show dissatisfaction with both parties nearing all-time highs, a group created for the 2012 campaign to field a third-party presidential candidate would seem like a natural success. Why, then, did the group -- which launched in a flurry of publicity and spent $35 million to get on ballots in 29 states -- fail?
• Why Americans Elect Crashed And Burned (Kyle Leighton, TPM) It seems that the inability to create a movement in this vein was less about the sentiment — polls show Americans are aren’t fans of either party specifically or the political process generally — but it was lacking a key ingredient: leadership. 
• Swing Voters and Elastic States (By NATE SILVER, NY Times/FiveThirtyEight) North Carolina is a swing state that has relatively few swing voters. Rhode Island is not a swing state, but it has quite a lot of swing voters. Are you confused yet?

I'm an Independent Voter, Can I Vote in the Primary in West Virginia?

WEST VIRGINIA INDEPENDENTS
GOP Votes to Stick With Primary (By Whitney Burdette, WTRF) State Republican Executive Committee voted Saturday to select presidential nominee by primary - “Albeit we’d love to pick early, we think it’s important that voters not be confused by the process,” he said. “Independents are able to participate in our process. In the convention format, independent voters were unable to participate.”

From Wikipedia:
In West Virginia, where state law allows parties to determine whether primaries are open to independents, Republican primaries are open to independents, while Democratic primaries were closed. However, as of April 1, 2007, West Virginia's Democratic Party opened its voting to allow "individuals who are not affiliated with any existing recognized party to participate in the election process".

Independent Candidate for West Virginia Supreme Court Vows Grassroots Campaign

WEST VIRGINIA
Allen Loughry Is Supreme Court Hopeful (By JOSELYN KING Political Writer, The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register) Loughry is the author of the book "Don't Buy Another Vote, I Won't Pay for a Landslide," which details the history of political corruption in West Virginia… "Political party traditionalists will be stunned at end of day," he added. "We will be a well-funded campaign, and we will win a seat on the court."

It's Primary Day - Do You Know Where Your Independents Are?

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• 10 things Republicans must do in 10 weeks (By Ed Hornick, CNN) #8 - Appeal to Independents: "The Republicans know that independents were an absolutely critical partner to Obama in the presidential election in 2008," said Jacqueline Salit, president of independentvoting.org, a national strategy and organizing center for independents. "So there's a lot of energy going into trying to peel independents away and turn them back to center-right."
• Independent voters getting stronger (by Robert Robb, The Arizona Republic)

OPEN PRIMARIES

• AZ: New poll: Arizonans want open, nonpartisan primaries (Arizona State University) Results showed that three-quarters of Arizona voters favor a primary election in which the two candidates, regardless of party affiliation, who receive the largest number of votes face off in the general election. This change is favored across party lines and among all age groups.
• AZ: Hear Me Out: Independent voters surge in Arizona, is two-party system not meeting public's needs? (ABC15.com)
• AZ: Get out and vote: Primary elections are today (BY BILL HESS, Sierra Vista Herald/Review) As for this primary, he would not forecast the turnout of the 76,641 registered voters in the county — independents may ask for Democratic, Republican or Green party ballots, but not Libertarian, to vote in those parties’ primaries.
• WI: Ross Kinzler: Declare winner with 51 percent of votes (LETTER Madison State Journal)
• WI: Bill Broydrick: Make our primaries more open (By BILL BROYDRICK, Wisconsin State Journal)
• VT: It's Primary Election Day in Vermont (By JOHN CURRAN, Associated Press Writer, WNCT Channel 9) Vermont has an open primary without advance party registration. That means a voter doesn't register as a party member, but selects one party's ballot and selects only from that one in the primary.
• FL: Other views: Florida should mandate open primaries (BY AUBREY JEWETT, Florida Today)
• LA: GOP endorses closed primaries (By MARSHA SHULER, Advocate Capitol News Bureau)
• LA: State Republican Party endorses return to party primaries for federal election (Ed Anderson, The Times-Picayune)
• WV: Citizens to determine format of city elections (By Kara Van Pelt, Register-Herald Reporter)

THIRD PARTIES

• In Mich., A 'Tea Party' Is Denied Spot On Ballot (by DON GONYEA, NPR) Richard Winger, who publishes a newsletter called Ballot-Access News, says independent voters are worth watching closely. "When times are bad, people are more interested in getting outside their normal habits," he said. And, Winger says, Michigan's Tea Party controversy aside, it could be the best year for independent candidates and third parties in many decades.

NEW YORK

• Republicans Look to Pick Up a Seat in Queens (by Ray Katz, Gotham Gazette) The 26th Assembly District features tree-lined streets, houses with American flags, parks -- and voters who switch from one party to the other.

NYC CHARTER REVISION

• Commission Votes to Put Term Limits on November Ballot in New York City (By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ, NY Times)
• Term Limits Vote Won't Apply to Sitting Pols, Commission Rules (By Jill Colvin, DNAinfo)
• Mike loses on limits (By DAVID SEIFMAN, NY Post)
• Limits & loopholes (NY Post) How many times do New Yorkers have to say, "Two terms is enough," before the political class gets the message? It's a relevant question, as Mayor Bloomberg's handpicked Charter Revision Commission today finishes up recommendations meant to appear on the November ballot -- with term limits chief among them.
• Fritz Schwartz Calls On Goldstein Not To Do Revote On Term Limits (By Chris Bragg, City Hall News)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS: The Fight for Open Primaries

KENTUCKY OPEN PRIMARIES BILL

• Independents still out in the cold (By PAUL GLASSER, The State Journal - Frankfort KY) "I'm not an undecided voter," Ritter said. "The current political process is not meeting our needs." 
  
• State should let independents vote in primary (LETTER TO Lexington Herald Leader) House Bill 17, a bill to allow unaffiliated voters to vote in the primary election, is a progressive step forward for Kentuckians.
  
• Early voting and running mate bills pass first step (Bluegrass Politics) “More people will vote. This is good for democracy,” said Mark Ritter, a retired state worker and lieutenant colonel in the Kentucky National Guard who has been a registered independent since 1991.
  

WEST VIRGINIA OPEN PRIMARIES

EDITORIAL: The Results Are In: GOP Legislators Want Independents Included in Republican Primaries (HuntingtonNews.Net) Simply put, the West Virginia Republican Party needs every vote it can get from likeminded individuals, whether they are Independents in primaries or conservative Democrats in general elections. 

TENNESSEE OPEN PRIMARIES

Tennessee should stick with open primary voting (By Gail Kerr, The Tennessean) In Tennessee, voters are notoriously independent. We have a long history of electing moderate candidates who have traits voters in both parties find attractive... Voters here like that they can pick the person, not the party. And that's how it should stay.

CALIFORNIA OPEN PRIMARIES

Maldonado: Now Accepting Friends (Santa Cruz.com) “This is why we need an open primary,” Maldonado told reporter Kurtis Alexander, “so we can keep extremists like Mr. Keeley from coming to Sacramento.” But wait! Keeley now works for the reform group California Forward, which supports open primaries.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• California discusses inclusion of "decline to state" voters in primaries -- will pull the parties together against it...
  
• West Virginia Repubs discuss closing their primary
  

• Cognatively unconscious linguistical turns in Obama's speech last night (text of speech here)
  

• Charlie Cook says independents support Obama's "bipartisan" approach in Congress -- now the parties need to follow suit...
  

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OPEN PRIMARIES
Party elite punishes Sen. Kurita (The Leaf Chronicle) In effect, the party elite selfishly used questionable evidence and flimsy excuses to disenfranchise 4,477 voters who wanted Kurita to continue to represent them.

CAMPAIGN

• PA: Whose county will it be Nov. 4? Independent voters will tip the scale (Lancaster Eagle Gazette)
• NC: New voter registrations could shift balance (Fay Observer) “What really jumps out at me is the unaffiliateds,” Woodcox said. “The independents are registering at a higher pace than Democrats or Republicans.”
• WV: Independent voters on the rise in state (REGISTER-HERALD REPORTER) Since the 2004 general election, Democrats have witnessed a 15,230 drop in their ranks and there are 1,433 fewer Republicans registered, but the non-affiliated, or so-called “independents,” have soared by 27,205.
• The GOP's New Love: Bi-Post-Non-Partisanship (BuzzFlash.org - IL) Oh, and they are Republicans, by the way. But you wouldn't know that to hear them talk … and talk, and talk -- and in some cases actually blame that party without reference to their own irresponsible membership, as though they'd been living some sort of out-of-body, existential misunderstanding for the last few years.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

WEST VIRGINIA

• Obama defeat amplifies race, rural problems (By BEN SMITH, Politico) “Nationally, Obama is running stronger among Independent voters than any winning Presidential candidate since 1988 and is significantly outperforming Sen. Clinton among these voters as well in general election polling,” the memo said.
• Obama May Have His Work Cut Out for Him to Draw Independents (Wall Street Journal)
• Obama in Missouri as W.V. decided (MSNBC First Read)
• The Obama camp's memo on WV (MSNBC First Read)
• Independents Make Impact (WVNS-TV)

OREGON * Poll shows Obama leads (The Gresham Outlook)

West Virginia: How independent are you?

West Virginia's Democratic primary was open to independent voters for the first time, and election officials were expecting a strong turnout. More than 76,000 West Virginians cast ballots during an early voting period that ran from April 23 to May 10, easily surpassing the previous record of 27,000 early ballots set in 2004. More than 70 percent of those ballots were cast in the Democratic primary, officials reported. (Free Internet Press)



More than half of registered voters in the state are Democrats, under 30 percent Republican, but more than 14 percent are registered independent according to Secretary of State Betty Ireland. (WVNS-TV Beckley, Bluefield and Lewisville)



Independent voters just need to request a Democratic or Republican ballot at the appropriate polling place. ( WOWK-TV Charleston and Huntington)

Independents vote today in West Virginia

For the first time ever, Democratic and independent voters headed to the polls in Charleston with two different yet historic options for president.... ....."No more Clintons, no more Bushes," said Brooks, coming out of his polling precinct at Garnet Career Center on Dickinson Street. "I voted for Obama because we need a change." ..... (Jake Stump, Charleston Daily Mail)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Libertarian a potential spoiler for McCain-Former Ga. congressman could draw conservatives (Boston Globe)
• Obama fans keeping faith in West Virginia (Winston Salem Journal)
• Open For Independents (WTAP - Fox Parkersburg)
• A New Choice For Those With No Party Affiliation (West Virginia Metro News)
• Secretary of State Wants National Spotlight To Show The Best (West Virginia Metro News)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• A Declaration of Independents: A New Kind of Politics (Pacific Free Press)
• Americans Trending Toward “The Middle” (By Justin Gardner, Donklephant)

CAMPAIGN * McConnell: Democrats will 'turn us into France' (Washington Times) He said the Democratic Party's push to the far left has opened the door for the maverick, who will attract independent voters and is arguably the strongest candidate Republicans could field at a time of widespread dissatisfaction with Washington.

WEST VIRGINIA * West Virginia savors moment in spotlight (USA Today) So West Virginia Democrats and unaffiliated voters — who together make up more than 800,000 registered voters — find themselves debating Iraq withdrawal plans and the benefits of universal coverage, as the campaigns blanket the state with ads and rallies.

NORTH CAROLINA * Seeing blue in N.C. (Charlotte Observer) If the Democrats can keep their coalition of 1.5 million primary voters together and win a substantial number of unaffiliated voters -- not even a majority -- who tend not to vote in primaries, they should have no problem beating McCain easily in Chatham, and they could even win North Carolina.

REFORM * Don't pin it all on electorate (Asbury Park Press) "The only thing a politician understands is losing."

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Marion County officials expect higher-than-normal voter turnout (Times West Virginian) "No party" voters can vote in party primaries for first time
• Already, Obama and McCain Map Fall Strategies (BlueRidgeNow)
• West Virginia Independent voters must ask for party ballot to vote in partisan races (The Herald-Dispatch)
• Obama Leads New Iowa Poll (WHO-TV Des Moines)
• Obama Edges McCain In The Middle (The Atlantic)
  
  

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• Clinton, Obama Top McCain on Handling the Economy, Poll Shows (Bloomberg)
• Clinton's Post-Mortem (The Nation)

WEST VIRGINIA

• Hillary wants to make West Virginia a symbol of her perseverance (Charleston Daily Mail)
• W.Va. early voting hits record (Charleston Daily Mail)

NORTH CAROLINA* Crossover voting? No! (Charlotte Observer Editorial)

LOCAL* Unafilliated voters can take part in California’s June direct primary (Granite Bay Press Tribune)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• Clinton continues despite dire predictions (USA TODAY) David Parker, a Democratic National Committee member and lawyer in Statesville, N.C., said letting the race continue is "good for the party because it brings those white independent voters over to the Democratic side, and we will need them in the fall."
• Clinton looks like a winner in West Virginia. Obama hopes pinned on independent voters (CHARLESTON, W.Va. Prime Buzz)

NORTH CAROLINA

• Primary prods a few superdelegates (News Observer) The Obama campaign estimated it knocked on 500,000 doors, including 200,000 on election day.
• Non-Democrats Influenced Ind., N.C. Vote (CBS News)

REFORM
Redistricting: Making it fair (Jacksonville Times-Union)

SEAN BELL PROTEST

• NYPD Arrests 216 Protesters (About/Civil Liberties blog)
• Sean Bell Protesters Slow City; Sharpton, Paterson Will Meet (NY Sun)
• Sean Bell Protest Hits Brooklyn (Brooklyn Daily Eagle)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• Gas Tax Moves to Front of Democratic Battle (To The Center) Indiana's Democratic primary is open to Republican and independent voters. While 44 percent polled said they would vote Democrat regardless the winner at the Democratic National Convention, reports the Globe, 38 percent will vote for McCain in November.
• Clinton and Obama prepare for the primaries, so are the punters (Online Gambling Paper) Odds are...
• Obama faces big tests in North Carolina, Indiana (Reuters)

NORTH CAROLINA

• Three Republicans vie to challenge Shuler (Asheville Citizen Times) registered Democrats (195,661), outnumber registered Republicans (166,546). But another 121,582 voters are unaffiliated, according to the N.C. Board of Elections.
• Polls open in N.C.; some long lines reported (Charlotte Observer) Statewide, 25,296 registered N.C. voters switched to either Democrat or unaffiliated during the first three months of 2008. Just under 6,000 switched to Republican.
• Young voters getting engaged with politics (Charlotte Observer) trend shows that young adults are increasingly identifying themselves as "independent" or "unaffiliated."

INDIANA
Conflicting Polls As Obama Clinton Head Into Indiana North Carolina Primary (The Moderate Voice)

WEST VIRGINIA
Counties throughout W.Va. must clean up their voter registration rolls (The Herald-Dispatch) The counties with the highest percentages of independents are Jefferson, Berkeley, Morgan, Mineral and Monongalia.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OPEN PRIMARIES

• Open or Closed Primaries: What is the Answer? Many across the country faced the same situation those in Oregon faced on April 30th, a day known in Oregon as “Lockout Day.” For primaries should there be any such day? (by Gary Wood, Nolan Chart)
• Sec. of state candidates differ little (Mail Tribune - OR) Support for open primaries

NORTH CAROLINA

• Suddenly, North Carolina Is Facing Tighter Race (New York Times) Clinton campaign predicted Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama would split those votes evenly. “We were getting destroyed with independents in all those early primaries,” Mr. Smith said Friday.
• Downtown packed for Clinton visit (BlueRidgeNow Times-News Online) Hendersonville turns out 2000 for Clinton, Repubs switch to unaffilated to vote
• Notable Numbers-Statistics from the past week that deserve a doubletake. (News Observer) 42.2% of party switchers have become unaffiliated

INDIANA

• Changing fortunes in Indiana: Clinton leads Obama (Noblesville News & Sports - IN)
• Clinton edging Obama in Indiana: Poll (Chicago Tribune/The Swamp)
• Obama, Clinton Seek Early Votes (Wheeling News Register/The Intelligencer)
• Poll: Clinton, Long Thompson in lead (The Journal Gazette) Clinton has expanded her lead among strong Democratic identifiers and dramatically turned the tables on Obama with independent voters and those concerned about the worsening economy

WEST VIRGINIA
Independents could shape primary (The Herald-Dispatch) According to voter registration numbers for Huntington's 36 precincts, there are 27,565 registered voters in the city. Of those, 4,175, or 15.1 percent, are nonpartisan or affiliated with a party other than the Democratic, Republican or Mountain parties.

CAMPAIGN

• Confronting Hillary (By Bill O'Reilly, Town Hall)
• Huckabee: '08 Evangelical Voters Unlike Others (Christian Post Reporter) Thus far in the 2008 race, McCain has not been able to coalesce evangelicals who are leaving the party to be independent voters.
• Former Democratic Party Leader Paul Kirk Backs Obama (Bloomberg.com) Obama ``has and will continue to expand the electorate beyond the traditional Democratic Party base and bring young and new and independent voters to the Democratic banner in November,''
• Polls Show Obama Struggling to ‘Close the Deal’ (by FOXNews.com) former DNC Chairman Paul Kirk Jr., who said in a statement: “Senator Obama is the one candidate who has and will continue to expand the electorate beyond the traditional Democratic party base and bring young and new and independent voters
• Superdelegate News, or Not (New York Times/the Caucus) Kirk on Obama's ability to bring independents into the Dem Party
• A Third Former DNC Chief Lines Up Behind Obama (Wall Street Journal/Washington Wire)
• Rasmussen: 58 Per cent Think Obama Denounced Wright For Political Convenience (Digital Journal) Just 36% of Democrats believe outrage was the motivation for Obama to denounce his former Pastor. That view is shared by 38% of unaffiliated voters and 16% of Republicans.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

NORTH CAROLINA

• Under the Dome column: Voters make swap for primary (The News & Observer, Raleigh) Of them, 42 percent switched to the Democratic Party and 42.2 percent switched to unaffiliated. Just 15 percent became Republicans.
• N.C. poll: Obama leads, Clinton gains (Charlotte Observer) By party registration, Obama led 48 percent to 43 percent among Democrats and 55-38 among independent or unaffiliated voters.
• Campaigns in full swing as voters head to the polls (Carrboro Citizen) Reams said the estimated party breakdown for those who have voted so far shows 7,160 Democrats, 619 Republicans and 2,098 unaffiliated voters.
• Poll: Obama leads Clinton in N.C. (Greensboro News Record)

INDIANA * Democrats Scramble for Indiana-In Open Primary,Republican Voters Could Decide Victor (Wall Street Journal)

WEST VIRGINIA

• White House race helps Democrats lead in early voting (Charleston Gazette) Unaffiliated voters reflect the fastest growing segment of the state's registered voters. Their ranks have swelled by 22,644 since the 2006 general election, and they now account for 13.2 percent of the state's total.
• Independents required to ask for party ballots (Charleston Gazette) "The polling place is a sacred place," Bailey said. "State law removes from poll workers any opportunity to influence voters."

POLLS

• McCain inches up in Harris poll (UPI) Obama has a significant edge with independent voters. While 37 percent would vote for him and 30 percent for McCain, in a Clinton-McCain match-up only 30 percent would vote for her and 36 percent for the Republican.
• Wright Uproar Boosts Clinton Confidence (The Politico) Associated Press-Ipsos poll showed her beating Republican John McCain 50 percent to 41 percent while Obama was running 46 percent to 44 percent in the same matchup. A Fox News poll Wednesday showed her outperforming Obama among independent voters.
• Anti-McCain ad seems to work (Baltimore Sun/The Swamp) HCD Reseach Inc., a market research company, found that independent voters went from 50 pecent who saw McCain in a "mostly favorable" light before they saw the ad, to 40 percent after they viewed the ad.
• Hillary Clinton's camp touts new poll findings (Los Angeles Times/Top of the Ticket)

FEATURE * Clinton and McCain Are Born Again as Populist Candidates (Gloria Borger, US News & World Report)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• FOX News Poll: Wright Ties Hurt Obama Campaign - And, despite that the bulk of independent voters (49 percent) says the issue would make no difference to their vote
• Health coverage is another reason to wed, poll finds (Nashua Telegraph/Los Angeles Times) "The general election is going to be a contest for independent voters," Altman said.
• Clinton Exuding Confidence (Washington Post/The Trail) Clinton operatives in both Indiana and North Carolina are targeting independent voters in both states, believing a demographic that heavily favored Obama in early primaries is now shifting to the New York Senator.
• Primary Confusion (By Tobin Harshaw, Opinionator/New York Times) Independents and open primaries

NORTH CAROLINA

• Vote way that serves interests (BlueRidgeNow) Independents should vote exactly how they want to
• North Carolina voters excited about primary (Pisgah Mountain News/Citizen Times) Of those new voters, 1,010 registered as unaffiliated in Henderson County. More than 800 have registered as Democrats and nearly 760 as Republicans.
• Primaries have finally arrived (The Cherokee Scout) “It’s just real important that people know that unaffiliated voters must pick a party,” Jones said. “Many unaffiliated voters do not understand that.”
• Record registration reported leading up to primary (Smoky Mountain News) ready for a paradigm shift

INDIANA * Wild cards could determine deadlocked Indiana (CNN) Open primary makes a difference

WEST VIRGINIA

• Independents required to ask for party ballots - Voters registered as independents or nonpartisan can choose whether to cast ballots in the Democratic, Republican or Mountain Party primaries. (Charleston Gazette)
• Unaffiliated Voters Cast Votes In Election (WVVA) About 5.8 percent of all early ballots cast have been from unaffiliated or independent voters.

REFORM * Fort Worth gets seat on panel (Star-Star Telegram) Many candidates for state office are finding favor with voters by speaking out against toll roads, especially the controversial Trans-Texas Corridor, a proposed statewide tollway network, said Linda Curtis of Bastrop, founder of Independent Texans, a group of independent voters that opposes toll roads.

BLACK PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP * Can “the Black experience” in America produce an acceptable presidential candidate? (John Milton Wesley's Weblog)

Mother, May I? West Virginia independent voters must ask for a party ballot

Some independent voters having trouble at the polls
By Scott Finn
This is the first year independent voters can vote in the Democratic primary. Some are finding out too late they can’t vote in the Democratic primary however – because they didn’t ask for the right type of ballot. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)