The Independent Voter
In 2020, after doing a lot of reading and research, I concluded that the two-party system in the United States is failing and polarizing us and needs an upgrade via mechanisms like non-partisan primaries and ranked choice voting. You know who figured this out a long time before I did? Jackie.
Jackie has been a part of independent political movements since the 1980s and is the President of IndependentVoting.org. “I got involved during the Lenora Fulani Independent presidential campaign of 1988 – she was the first African American woman to get on the presidential ballot in all 50 states, as a third party candidate no less.”
Today, there are more Independents than ever according to polling – between 40 and 50% of Americans now self-identify as Independent or unaffiliated. Jackie writes that Independent Voters have several distinct purposes. First, they inject new ideas into the two major parties. Second, they swing and shape elections – they did so just this past month by leaning toward Democrats by 4 points, contrary to expectations. And third, they can be the bridge to a post-partisan less ideological political system.
Also interestingly – Independents tend to make those around them less extreme and more open to discussion and disagreement. Independents are less likely to end a friendship over a political argument, for example.
So, everyone must love Independents, right? Quite the contrary; both the media and academics tend to minimize their existence. “Pollsters often deny the existence of independents by categorizing voters based on which direction they leaned or voted in the past, and articles often claim that Independents are just closet partisans who don’t like to admit it. That’s what we’re looking to change – there’s actually a ton of interesting scholarship and study that can be done on who Independent voters are and what matters to us.”
Jackie writes: “The key to forestalling a move beyond the two parties is to ruthlessly enforce the power of party identification. How is this done? Through a complex matrix of laws, rules, and psychological and social messaging that the two-party system and a left-right ideology represent the totality of possibility.” That put a very fine point on it. It’s actually an uphill climb for Independents to make their voice heard in a system that tries to discourage it, even as this body of voters is necessary to win most any contested election.
Another observation that points out how unusually strong partisanship is in the U.S. – “the United States is the only democracy in the world that permits partisan contests for election officials. In other democracies, elections are run by independent commissions or agencies shielded from political influence.” This is common sense. We are the only country that thinks having a state’s Secretary of State who runs elections having to win an election representing one party or the other is a good way to go.
Jackie’s book concludes with a couple of very compelling arguments in addition to non-partisan primaries and ranked choice voting:
“No American should be required to join a political party or organization as a condition of voting.” Right now many Independents effectively can’t vote in the primaries that decide most elections. That’s against the spirit of democracy.
“No taxpayer dollars should be used for party business, including primaries, if the parties decide to hold them as a means of endorsing a candidate.” Similarly, asking Americans to pay for elections they might not be able to participate in doesn’t seem fair.
Fundamentally, you have the people, the parties and the country. Which wins out in the end? Any move to a post-partisan future starts with the recognition that the interests of people and the parties that claim to represent them aren’t always aligned. More Americans are waking up to this reality every day. Let’s speed it up.
I’m proud to say that Jackie is now a Board member of Forward Party! She’s been fighting for people and communities’ right to have a say in their own future for years. If you’d like to join us, check out Forward here.
