Scot Faulkner joins host T. J. O’Hara on Deconstructed to discuss his experience as the first Chief Administrative Officer of the United States House of Representatives and how he views the transitioning nature of our Nation. He shares the inside story of just how corrupt the House was when he was called upon to “fix it” in 1995 and who erected barriers (and why) to limit the change in the second edition of his critically acclaimed bestseller, "Naked Emperors; The Failure of the Republican Revolution.”

ALBANY, N.Y. - The Libertarian Party of New York (LPNY) and Green Party of New York (GPNY) filed a lawsuit against state officials Tuesday for new ballot access restrictions the parties say were passed under the cover of the COVID-19 pandemic to kick third parties off the ballot and keep them off.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on The Fulcrum and has been republished with permission from the publisher.

‍

Four states are on the cusp of approving anti-gerrymandering petitions for the November ballot, but challenges still remain.

Ranked choice voting (RCV) opponents tried to repeal RCV for state primaries and non-presidential federal elections in Maine. They failed. They tried to have a federal court throw out RCV results in the 2018 general election. They failed. They tried to garner enough signatures for a people’s veto against RCV for presidential elections. They failed.

Yet the motto of RCV opponents in Maine apparently is if at first you don’t succeed at overturning the will of the people, try, try, try, try, and try again.

Editor's Note: Please see the corresponding number in the "Notes" for the source of the information.

Introduction

Now more than ever, police misconduct has rocketed to the forefront of our national conversation.

Unfortunately, the current system has proven unequipped to handle this misconduct and hold police accountable for their actions. (1) After all, an outsized number of police officers who violate their duties are never tried for their offenses, and those who are fired often “police hop” to policing jobs elsewhere. (2)

Editor's Note: This op-ed originally appeared in The Fulcrum and has been republished with permission from the publisher.

This is a call to people who love our country more than they hate their political opponents. It is our duty and our honor to put country before party.

‍

The nonpartisan reform group FairVote released a new report Wednesday that examines the impact ranked choice voting had on the 4 Democratic presidential primaries and caucus that used ranked choice voting for the first time in 2020. The conclusion? Voters took advantage of RCV, made few errors, and turned out in much higher numbers.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF. - El movimiento nacional a favor de la reforma electoral Ranked Choice Voting (Votación por orden de preferencia) le faltó solo un voto en el cabildo de San Diego, para aparecer en la boleta de este noviembre. 

‍SAN DIEGO, CALIF. – The national momentum for Top Four Ranked Choice Voting Reform fell one vote short of landing “Top4RCV” on the November ballot in the nation’s 8th largest City.

San Diego, which identifies itself as “America’s Finest City,” has a 9 member City Council made up of 6 Democrats, 2 Republicans, and 1 independent. A nonpartisan coalition of Council members --Mark Kersey (NPP), Barbara Bry (D), Monica Montgomery (D), and Chris Cate (R) -- voted in favor of putting the reform measure on the ballot.

The cross-partisan group VoteSafe announced Tuesday that leaders in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have answered the call to ensure all voters have a safe and secure voting option in November. 

The newly-formed state-based coalitions are led by GOP House Majority Leader Dave Reed and former Democratic U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy in Pennsylvania, and Attorney General Josh Kaul and former Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen in Wisconsin.