SAN DIEGO, CALIF. - The California Labor Federation, the state’s major labor organization, is abandoning Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar’s campaign to unseat indicted Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter over his ambiguous stand on California’s gasoline tax.

“We made the decision that it’s not a district that California Labor Federation will be engaged in,” federation spokesman Steve Smith said Monday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTELy6PdwvU

Candidates Ed Hernandez and Eleni Kounalakis are vying to become California’s next lieutenant governor. The “lite gov,” in the parlance, chairs the California State Lands Commission and the California Commission for Economic Development, sits on the University of California Board of Regents and California State University Board of Trustees and, most importantly, steps in if the governor cannot serve or leaves the state.

Much of the media's election coverage two weeks out from Election Day is focused on what kind of wave we are seeing -- red or blue -- and how Donald Trump will affect the outcome of the midterms. However, what often gets overlooked are the stories that matter to independent-minded voters.

Here are the top 5 stories in nonpartisan news to start your week:

(IVN) Making a campaign stop in Montana and appearing on stage with Rep. Greg Gianforte (R-MT), President Donald Trump went a step further than endorsing the congressman despite his physical assault on a reporter the night before a special election last year.

To the sound of hoots, cheers, and whistles from the MAGA rally crowd, the president explicitly endorsed Gianforte's assault (for which he was criminally charged) saying:

How will independents vote in the upcoming elections? An opinion piece appearing in the New York Times this week, entitled “How to Win Swing Voters (And How to Lose Them),” says:

"As we often hear, independent voters hold the power to swing elections.

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - WPVI-TV Action News of Pennsylvania has lost an important sponsor, The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, for excluding third parties from a televised U.S. Senate debate over the weekend, even though they're on the ballot this year.

There is only one governor in the US with an "I" next to their name: Alaska Governor Bill Walker. However, Walker announced late Friday that he has suspended his bid for re-election -- citing the poor odds against his campaign winning the election and preventing the candidate he least wants to win from getting elected.

Depending on which pollster you ask as California voters begin to turn in their ballots, Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom's bid is wrapped in an aura of inevitability – OR wealth management financier John Cox, Newsom's opponent in the governor's race, is dramatically closing the gap between them.

Whence cometh the difference?

In the latest episode of "In Full Color," IVN Editor Shawn Griffiths discusses a new voting method with Sara Wolf, campaign manager for STAR Voting for Lane County in Oregon that could change the way we look at elections.

Imagine you could rate candidates on the ballot like you rate your Uber driver or a product on Amazon? That's the idea, and advocates say it gives all voters an equal vote, provides a more accurate and more representative look at how voters view each candidate, and elects the best candidates.

Job Posting:

U.S. House of Representatives

Starting Salary: $174,000

Job Description

For the 116th time in history, the entire U.S. House of Representatives is hiring for all 435 positions.

Politically ambitious Californians have applied for one of 53 positions in the state’s congressional delegation. Duties include: