Independent voters

Unrest among voters has implications for midterm elections; Watch those polls – but watch those polls carefully!

• Obama Caught Up in the Washington Blame Game-The rancorous atmosphere in Washington has spread to healthcare town hall meetings (By Kenneth T. Walsh, US News & World Report) There is a real danger here for the Washington establishment. If voters conclude that it’s business as usual—gridlock, created for partisan purposes, and a refusal or inability to do the public’s business—they will turn against those in office. That could cause the defeat of significant numbers of incumbents in the midterm elections next year, fuel the rise of a third party or an independent candidate for president, and add to the cynicism about Washington’s ability to get things done.
• 57% Would Like to Replace Entire Congress (Rasmussen Reports)
• Poll results that are poles apart (LA Times OpEd, By Phil Trounstine and Jerry Roberts) Some political analysts, citing an increase in the number and proportion of “independent” voters who decline to affiliate with a major party, have argued that California is becoming a post-partisan “purple state.”

Open Primaries

• Whitman, Campbell oppose effort to bar indy voters from GOP primary (Carla Marinucci, San Francisco Chronicle/Spin Cycle)

Third Parties

• Brennan Center Press Release on Connecticut Public Funding Decision is Inaccurate (Ballot Access News)

For more news for independents, see The Hankster