The 2020 presidential election has its first announced candidate, and he supports nonpartisan primary reform in all states: US Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.).

Delaney officially announced he is running for the Democratic nomination in three years, explaining in an interview that he sees "no downside in getting in early" and spending the time to build his name ID.

Delaney is best known in the election reform community for his support of nonpartisan open primaries and independent redistricting commissions.

The Pew Research Center has been tracking Americans’ political party “identification” for more than 20 years. A few weeks before last year’s election, their annual survey found 33 percent of American voters identifying themselves as Democrats and 29 percent as Republicans.

The rest?

The remaining 34 percent of voters identified themselves as independents — not affiliated with either of the two so-called major parties. That’s right: The real plurality in America today is made up of voters who are neither Republicans nor Democrats.

Host T.J. O'Hara is joined by Nick Troiano, executive director of The Centrist Project.

T.J and Troiano discuss the latest endeavors of The Centrist Project, including projects in support of independent candidates across the nation, how independents could change the US’s health care discussion, what an independent caucus would look like, and more.

President Donald Trump’s quest for uncovering election fraud may find new life in Illinois.

After winning the 2016 election Trump charged that "millions" of people cast illegal votes.

In May, Trump issued an executive order forming the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.

Election Hacking Concerns Need Solutions, Not Partisan Bickering

There is arguably nothing more important to our democracy, than keeping elections safe and free from hackers.

In a piece on IVN, Editor Shawn Griffiths notes:

"The Mooch" is out.

The White House announced Monday that Anthony Scaramucci is out as communications director. The announcement was expected following his expletive-laced tirade to a reporter from the New Yorker.

"It took me only a few minutes to see how to hack it."

We have known for some time that state voting machines are incredibly vulnerable to cyberattack. Is this breaking news? No. White hat hackers (ethical hackers) in recent history have demonstrated time and time again just how easy it is to hack into the machines.

So what is being done about it?

The election landscape in Colorado recently underwent a significant makeover.

Thanks to two initiatives spearheaded by Let Colorado Vote, a coalition dedicated to expanding voter access to the ballot for all taxpaying Colorado citizens, unaffiliated voters now have the opportunity to participate in all stages of elections.

Since 2008, Colorado has led the nation in the growth of unaffiliated voters who – at 35% of active voters – number more than Democrats or Republicans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kHeki5yysw

Perhaps wanting to quickly pivot from the health care reform debacle, the administration is poised to roll out its plan for tax reform this week.

The DNC knows it has a populism problem. The Democratic Party is more divided than ever in the wake of the 2016 election. But does their new platform go far enough to reassure American voters that they’re trustworthy and that they’ve reinvented the party since the 2016 election?

Recent history indicates otherwise.

The election of Tom Perez as DNC Chair did little to alleviate concerns of progressives who thought a shakeup in party leadership could set the party’s course straight.