At this week’s Power Hour, Let Us Vote launched a National Poll of independent voters.
Independent voters are now 47% of American voters, yet we are still misunderstood, in many instances willfully ignored by the media and the political class, and in 14 states denied the right to vote in primaries we help pay for with our tax dollars. Independents face a huge bias against us.
Here’s one example. CNN recently published an article entitled, See the five types of Independents that have big implications for American politics in which they create five boxes to fit independents in: Democratic Lookalikes, Republican Lookalikes, The Disappointed Middle, Upbeat Outsiders and The Checked Out! The funny thing about their boxes — the article ends up asserting that 63% of independents are either partisan clones or don’t care about politics at all!
All this parsing, slicing and dicing of independents through a two party framework completely misses the point – Independents have refused to accept that framework.
Just Take a look at what Let Us Vote members share in this week’s Independents Speak Out section below!
John Opdycke, the President of Open Primaries takes on this very biased way of approaching the fastest growing community of voters in the country in his editorial in the Fulcrum last week entitled The Independent Exodus.
So, it’s time for us to speak for ourselves and share how we think about the current political picture. Take a moment and take the national poll. Then share the poll – there are easy share buttons at the end of the poll. Send an email to other independent voters you know and invite them to take the poll. Share the poll on your social media – FB, Twitter, LinkedIn.
We want to reach 10,000 independent Americans by November 10th!
Today we are spotlighting three independents sharing their story. We’d love to hear from you – tell us why you’re an independent. It’s easy to participate – fill out the Independents Speak Out questionnaire and send us a photo.
Check John’s video message on what it means to be locked out of voting in primaries. You can watch the video here on the Let Us Vote website. You can record a video of why you’re an independent here.
Join Alicia, John and Vanessa tell us why you’re an independent.
Are Closing Texas Primaries Bad for Texas?
Texas primary elections are taxpayer funded and government run. Right now voters don’t register with a party but only as…voters. That means that every registered voter can pick a ballot and participate in the primary of their choice.
The Texas Republican Party has taken the Secretary of State to court in an effort to close their primaries. If the GOP prevails in their federal lawsuit, primary elections will continue to be taxpayer funded and government run BUT only voters who register in a party will be able to vote. That means every Texan would have to re-register as a Republican, Democrat or independent voter.
And if you choose to re-register as an independent, you would be shut out of voting in Texas primaries-permanently.
The Texas Attorney General has taken the extraordinary position of refusing to defend the state’s election laws and the Texas Secretary of State in the federal lawsuit and he is encouraging the state Secretary of State Jane Nelson to follow his lead. However, the Secretary of State has hired private counsel to defend the suit.
If you live in Texas, we want to know what you think. Take the Let Us Vote Texas Poll. Please share the poll with other Texas voters! It’s time for Texas voters to weigh in!
Open Primaries is growing and we’re excited to announce two new staff joining the team.
National Organizer:
Bree is an organizer at heart and has advised several mission-driven organizations on navigating complex policy landscapes, designing programs, and building strategies that drive measurable social impact. She helped lead voter outreach initiatives in Pennsylvania in advance of the 2024 presidential election, utilizing evidence-based methods to foster meaningful conversations and inspire civic participation.
Open Primaries Digital Communications Director:
Jesse brilliantly ran Open Primaries’ digital communications platforms 7 years ago. With now more than ten years of experience leading digital programs for nonprofits and advocacy groups, Jesse is back and passionate about combining technology, storytelling, and organizing to spark meaningful change.
Please join us in welcoming Bree and Jesse! We’ll be working closely with both of them here at Let Us Vote.
