On Thursday, August 6th, 2015, Jon Stewart will end his 16 year and five month reign as television's most influential political satirist as the host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart."  With less than 24 hours before his last show, viewers' reactions online have been both heartfelt and dismissive.

https://twitter.com/Devon4Real/status/629064624768421888

On July 14, Iran agreed to a nuclear deal in Vienna that would greatly inhibit its ability to develop a nuclear weapon. The agreement, if it goes into effect, will not only cause Iran to forfeit most of its centrifuges and enriched uranium, but it will also establish an inspection regime that covers everything from Iran's two uranium mines to, in the words of Vox,&n

Nate Silver, the founder and Editor-in-Chief of FiveThirtyEight participated in his second AMA (ask me anything) on Reddit, Wednesday. While FiveThirtyEight also covers sports, Silver caught the spotlight in 2012 with laser-like predictive analysis of the POTUS and congressional elections.

The 10 candidates who will appear at the prime-time debate are:

The nonpartisan or "top-two" primary in California is working and the Golden State has more competitive elections, has increased voter access and a better functioning legislature.

The early successes of California's nonpartisan, top-two primary are paving the way toward increased voter representation and decreased partisan gridlock. What this means for all voters is that they finally have a voice when it comes to deciding their representatives, who are supposed to put their constituents before party interests or re-election goals.

American two-party politics is fairly described as a polarized fight between the left and right. Mutual distrust, contempt, fear and anger, and collective “animosity” drive the polarization. For the most part, the warring sides clash based on differing ideological faiths, values, and perceptions of reality. The resulting policy choices are usually starkly different.

The Republican Party is holding its first presidential debate on August 6, to be televised on Fox News. Fox has decided against inviting all 17 declared presidential candidates to the main debate, and will limit inclusion to the 10 candidates with the highest average poll rating among five recent credible (if still undefined) national polls of Republican voters.

Presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has made health care a central plank in his platform.

IVN (Independent Voter Network) announced Tuesday that T.J. O’Hara has joined the IVN team of contributors as a Principal Political Analyst. As such, Mr. O’Hara will provide analyses of many of our nation’s most challenging political issues, as well as insight into possible solutions -- all from a nonpartisan perspective.