Center for Competitive Democracy
@voterchoice
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Fighting for voter choice since 2005.
Washington, DC
Joined March 2020
Are we a nation of laws or of . partisan elections officials who refuse to follow the law?.
Watch the moment from the @NCSBE meeting where Chairman Circosta (Democrat) refuses to answer NC Green Party lawyer Oliver Hall's question if there's any reason not to certify the @NorthCarolinaGP's 15,953 verified signatures, then shouts down our lawyer & mutes him. @voterchoice
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We won emergency relief from Illinois' ballot access requirements in federal court today -- @LPIllinois, @ILGreenParty and independents all benefit from major reductions:
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This means Illinois voters will have the choice to vote Green or Libertarian for both President and U.S. Senate in 2020, and independents only need 10 percent of the normal requirement to qualify. @GreenPartyUS. @LPNational. #voterchoice.
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1/2 Hear that? It's the sound of democracy growing. We just won a case protecting citizens' right to form new political parties in Maine: .@LPNational @LP_Maine.
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We're proud to represent these #TexasVoters who want #CompetitiveElections and more #VoterChoice in Texas:.
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1/2 Suppose you ran for office, qualified for matching funds, and five years later the FEC demanded repayment of $175k. Unfortunately, @DrJillStein doesn't have to imagine:.@DrJillStein @HowieHawkins @RalphNader.
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@DrJillStein Thank you Jill for overcoming near insurmountable obstacles to run for public office -- the consummate expression of First Amendment freedoms!.
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We just scored another big win in the 7th Circuit -- paving the way for more #voterchoice and competition in Illinois' #2020Elections. Congrats to our Independent, @LPIllinois and @ILGreenParty friends!.
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2/2 That's why we're helping @DrJillStein take her fight to court. Accepting matching funds to pay for ballot access shouldn't subject candidates to financial jeopardy five years after an election. @GreenPartyUS.
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Republicans didn't help @RalphNader get on Ohio's ballot in 2004, and there was no allegation that they did. The case you cite proves instead that Democrats unconstitutionally removed him from the ballot that year. Care to issue a correction? 2/2.
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This. Says it all.
@mcuban @CornelWest @voterchoice Thank you Mark Cuban for helping in getting Kennedy and West on the ballot. Voters deserve more than two options.
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Why don't you tweet about your effort to suppress voter choice in North Carolina? Because you lost? Or because it was a shameful attempt to subvert voter rights? @MatthewPHoh @NorthCarolinaGP?.
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"The FEC never fails to disappoint. Congress needs to reform this broken agency.”.
JUST IN:.The Federal Election Commission (FEC) has released records revealing how partisan deadlock blocked its investigation into potential coordination between Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign and the Russian Federation. More on this below.
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@maggieNYT, @dannyhakim and @NYTnickc: there's a significant error in your story below: 1/2 . How Republicans Are Trying to Use the Green Party to Their Advantage
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We just published a post rebutting that old canard that @RalphNader cost @algore the 2000 presidential election:.Ok everyone, take a deep breath and give it a fresh look.
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A history lesson for those who don't think we need ballot access reform: for the first 100-plus years of American history, voters could vote for any candidate they wanted. They just wrote the candidate's name on a paper and dropped it in the ballot box. 1/4.
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We're fighting for the right of all Americans to participate in #election2020. #voterchoice 1/4.
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Sometimes the most repressive voices today come from the so-called liberal media:. The Editorial Board: New York can bid good riddance to Green, Independence parties – and all the other minor parties, too via @TheBuffaloNews.
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Green Party points out Democrats’ ‘distortions,’ ‘misrepresentations’ in Appeals Court filing
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Now states use restrictive ballot access laws to prevent qualified candidates from running, thus denying voters a free choice at the polls. So the official state ballot, which was adopted to protect #voterchoice, now stifles voters' choices. 3/4.
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The #2022Elections just got more competitive, more democratic and more representative in Maine after U.S. District Judge Lance Walker ordered @LP_Maine back onto the ballot! 1/2.
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This is the first ballot access win in Texas in just about ever -- and it's a big one!.
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@mcuban Agreed. We're asking Governors and state elections officials to make reasonable accommodations to protect the public health and the constitutional right of voters to cast their votes effectively. This is common sense and shouldn't require a federal lawsuit.
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Federal Appeals Court denies Democrats’ bid to block Green Party from N.C. ballot
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Now @dscc and @NCDemParty have their own #BigLie. If what they say is true, why did all three Democrats on the @NCSBE reverse themselves after we sued? @NorthCarolinaGP @MatthewPHoh . NC Elections Board certifies Green Party; Democrats to sue
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Big win in the 6th Circuit today! The Court upheld our district court win striking down Michigan's independent candidate requirements! Check it out:.
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"In 2005, Thomas wrote the majority opinion in a case that expanded Chevron’s protections for government agencies. Then in 2020, Thomas renounced his own earlier decision. ". Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
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The potential demise of @debates is welcome news. But we'll eat our hat if @RNC wants to replace it with something better. Not that it's hard: just allow voters access to #MoreVoicesMoreChoices. Ratings would skyrocket.
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And one in Pennsylvania on behalf of .@LPPAorg, @GreenPartyofPA, and the Constitution Party of PA 4/4.
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Time to step into the 21st century, Texas!.@LPTexas @TXGreens . Grumet: Court ruling 'a game changer' for much-needed third-party candidates in Texas via @statesman.
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Good news for sure but Texas remains dead last nationwide when it comes to protecting #voterchoice and competitive elections. Third-party candidates may have an easier time getting on the ballot in Texas via @TexasTribune.
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On behalf of millions of American voters, here is our response:
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As a result, independent candidates for statewide office now only need 12,000 signatures to get on the ballot, instead of 30,000.
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@marceelias @dscc is on record: its only interest in this case is to suppress voter choice by denying voters the right to vote for a competing candidate. It's in the evidence. Not surprisingly, @marceelias and his firm are mysteriously unavailable whenever press seeks comment.
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After striking down Maine's ballot access laws in November, Judge Walker granted @LP_Maine emergency relief in an order entered on New Year's Eve, because the petitioning period for the #2022Elections started January 1.
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And that's why we need ballot access reform. It's as American as apple pie on the 4th of July. See some of our recent wins here: 4/4.
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Can't argue with this but @debates isn't going anywhere until the American people demand it. Their mission is to ensure Republicans and Democrats face no competition and never answer for it. Presidential debates worked better when women called the shots
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@CheriBeasleyNC @dscc Do you think it inspires confidence, much less enthusiasm, in voters when you show you're afraid to compete with @MatthewPHoh and @NorthCarolinaGP?.
We filed an emergency injunction yesterday in court. It’s been 51 days since we filed for certification by NC State Board of Elections & we are still waiting for their legal justification for not doing so. @CarolinaJournal gives a great summation: #ncpol.
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@TheCont83801381 @mcuban @kanyewest That's easy. It was illegal due to COVID-19 restrictions to petition for ballot access in Illinois in 2020. Then we sued. A federal court declared Illinois' laws unconstitutional as applied, and the 7th Circuit affirmed.
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But voter intimidation, harassment and bribery became rampant, so states started printing one official ballot with all candidates' names on it. The idea was to protect #voterchoice by allowing voters to make their selections in private. 2/4.
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You may have read something about a sketchy "interview" Alito did in @WSJ Opinion section (!?) but no one connects the dots like @SenWhitehouse. SCOTUS doesn't even have process for complaints/investigation.
Nothing prohibits the Court from adopting procedures to address complaints of misconduct by the justices. They just haven’t bothered to. That has to change. Here's my 24th speech on the Captured Supreme Court and its ongoing ethical lapses.
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"But if you do think lefties voting third party determine the outcomes of national elections, perhaps at some point you might consider actually giving those lefties something to vote for?".
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Judge Dever also noted the evidence of @dscc's interference with @NorthCarolinaGP's petition drive: they didn't come to court with "clean hands," he wrote.
“It is plain for anyone who looks to see that the intervenors simply do not want to give voters the option to vote for the two Green Party candidates,” Federal District Judge Dever wrote:
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Illinois adopted its petitioning requirement in 1891. None of this would have been necessary if the state had updated its procedure in the 129 years since. Electronic signatures are legal for everything else -- why not candidate petitions?.
Third-party candidates net win with lower ballot requirements during pandemic
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@mcuban We tend to stick to our lane here but one thing we know about is #ballotaccess and on that issue @mcuban has been an outspoken and visionary leader. We need more business leaders to recognize that competition works in politics just like it does in business!.
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Indiana Green Party, Libertarian Party sue state over 'unconstitutional' election laws via @indystar.
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@ProudSocialist Not sure we'd draw an equivalence between the parties but these headlines speak for themselves. And Democrats have been doing it for years, with no accountability.
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Join us tomorrow for a panel discussion on direct democracy in America in the #2020Elections -- register now!.
🔥EVERY VOTE COUNTS - Webinar🇺🇸. ✅Register now at ⤵. @jackiemitchellx @Ballotpedia @pauljacob @CitizenInCharge @voterchoice @Ridderrick @RockyMtnWolf @bfgpollara @FloridaFairWage @SeriouslySamuel @voteyeson109 @mdanewaters @joemmathews @VoterWOBorders
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What are the odds that @CheriBeasleyNC loses votes because North Carolinians can't stomach her party's efforts to suppress voter choice by eliminating the competition?.
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@debates was formed by Republicans and Democrats for Republicans and Democrats, and its purpose is to exclude everyone else. So let's call it what it is: a cartel. #opendebates.org @farahfindings @OpenTheDebates.
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For those who missed it, @democracy_intl's webinar on the status of initiatives in the #2020elections and beyond is available for viewing here:
🗣️Initiatives are representative for political speech! .When there is no constitutional protection on initiatives, political speech is clearly restricted – states Oliver Hall from @voterchoice while discussing the signature-collecting process during the COVID-19 pandemic!🇺🇸🗳️
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@ForwardCarolina What's remarkable is that a self-identified "progressive" group like @ForwardCarolina sees fit to attack @NorthCarolinaGP for . participating in an election?.
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@gailcollins thinks we'd be "better off" with just two political parties, and that people vote for alternatives to "feel superior" or "dodge responsibility": 1/2.
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Breaking our unofficial Twitter/X pause to call for an immediate investigation into the "kitchen" from which @KatieBrittforAL delivered her response #StateOfTheUnion.
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@mcuban @Jamie_Weinstein Yes, we've always had a two-party system but it was one where other parties and independents were free to participate. That changed in the 20th century when states (i.e., Republicans and Democrats) began enacting restrictive and discriminatory ballot access laws.
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The "price tag topped $600,000 in recent statewide elections.".Federal judge throws out paper petitioning mandate for third-party candidates in Texas via @expressnews.
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Check it out: we've filed two new emergency actions for #petitioningrelief in the #2020election due to the #COVID19 pandemic. 2/4.
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“It is plain for anyone who looks to see that the intervenors simply do not want to give voters the option to vote for the two Green Party candidates,” Federal District Judge Dever wrote:
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We're now approaching the perfect inverse of democratic elections, wherein politicians choose voters rather than voters choosing politicians. Yet SCOTUS says federal courts are powerless to stop it. What if we don't vote for any politician who won't support #CompetitiveElections?.
Since Democrats and Republicans have 'gerrymandered' about the same number of seats, some reporters are pitching it as a "win". Let's be clear: This redistricting cycle has not been a win. Competitive districts are virtually gone, reducing voter power.
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@mcuban @Jamie_Weinstein Now states guarantee automatic ballot access to Republicans and Democrats while many make it difficult or nearly impossible for anyone else to challenge them.
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@ForwardCarolina Minor parties have to hire people to collect the tens of thousands of signatures the state requires of them. Nothing remarkable -- much less wrong -- about that.
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@marceelias The evidence shows that actual fraud was committed by those seeking to convince @NorthCarolinaGP petition signers to remove their names from the petition. @dscc was directly involved in that effort. Did @dscc commit fraud?.
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Nice take @H_Schoenbaum. This is what passes for journalism at @AP? No mention of the @dscc attempt to suppress voter choice with false allegations and voter harassment and intimidation? Straight up journalistic malpractice.
NEW: @NorthCarolinaGP’s Senate candidate must be placed on the ballot, a federal judge says, despite Democrats’ attempts to block the progressive party from spoiling one of their best shots at flipping a seat in the narrowly divided chamber. @AP #ncpol.
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Appeals court decision keeps Green Party candidates on NC ballots ::
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Our hearing in this case was remote -- because there's a pandemic, the courthouse is closed and it's apparently not safe to have in-person hearings -- yet the court declined to grant relief from in-person petitioning requirements. 1/2.
Yesterday, the courts in PA decided that the Libertarian Party of PA needs to collect 5000 signatures in the next few weeks for our candidates to appear on the ballot there - putting everyday Pennsylvanians at risk of #COVID19 to have their political voices heard. Please help PA:
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Thank you @MatthewPHoh for running -- the consummate expression of First Amendment freedoms of speech, association and petitioning! And congratulations on running a stellar campaign.
When the NC Board of Elections and the Democratic Party were trying to keep us off the ballot, Oliver Hall and the Center for Competitive Democracy @voterchoice got us a big win for democracy. Consider supporting the Center for Competitive Democracy today!
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What if @dscc tried to win elections by winning votes, instead of denying voters a choice? Would candidates like @CheriBeasleyNC be stronger?Suppressing voter choice is never a good look, especially for self-proclaimed "progressives". @MatthewPHoh @NorthCarolinaGP.
@marceelias @dscc is on record: its only interest in this case is to suppress voter choice by denying voters the right to vote for a competing candidate. It's in the evidence. Not surprisingly, @marceelias and his firm are mysteriously unavailable whenever press seeks comment.
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Yes, they are:. NC Democrats are undermining democracy with Green Party attack
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We're pleased to join @GovernorQuinn and others for @AdvocacyCenter1's Direct Democracy Forum tonight at 7:30 Eastern. We'll be talking petitioning in the times of Covid, among other challenges. Register here:
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On June 19, 2020, in partnership with pro bono counsel from Astrachan Gunst Thomas, we won a federal court order granting #petitioningrelief for @mdgreens and @LPMaryland. #voterchoice 3/4.
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Thanks to @mcuban for the shout-out on @karaswisher's NYT podcast Sway! Check it out at 31:58. And if you want more #voterchoice in our elections, check us out and consider supporting our work. Mark Cuban Has Some Things to Say .
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An elected congressman poised to launch a presidential bid as a candidate of the third-largest political party in the nation. Big story. Too bad @tripgabriel and @jmartNYT find nothing to report here but pundits' opinions on whether @justinamash will help or hurt Trump or Biden.
Amash a spoiler? Dem and GOP strategists in Michigan to those with heart palpitations: Calm down. With @jmartNYT
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@chucklindell When you say @TXGreens and @LPTexas voters would "otherwise" vote for Democrats or Republicans, do you mean when unconstitutional laws deny them the right to vote for the candidates of their own choosing?.
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We're winning #petitioningrelief for independents and minor parties due to the #COVID19 pandemic and protecting #voterchoice in the #2020Election nationwide. And we just scored 3 big victories in 4 days. 1/4.
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Not to mention @NatlPopularVote, which would prevent candidates from losing the popular vote but winning the election in the Electoral College. After 2000 and 2016, you'd think Dems would get behind this common sense solution. .
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Justice delayed is justice denied: a case study.
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The 30-year-drought continues: #SCOTUS declines to hear yet another case brought by a minor party -- this one challenging a clearly unconstitutional law that bars minor party members from serving in a public office.1/2.
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@ForwardCarolina We'll be looking forward to your retraction and apology to @NorthCarolinaGP when this is proven false.
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On June 18, 2020, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals granted our appeal on behalf of an Independent candidate for U.S. House in IL, reversing a district court decision upholding IL's ballot access laws. 2/4.
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@mcuban @Jamie_Weinstein It wasn't always this way. Historically minor parties and independents were a vital source of innovative ideas the major parties wouldn't touch -- like social security, the graduated income tax, a 40-hour work week and many more. That's why we need to #DeregulateBallotAccess.
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And on June 21, 2020 the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals denied @illinoissbe's attempt to stay the District Court order granting #petitioningrelief to IL's independent and @ILGreenParty and @LPIllinois candidates. Onward! 4/4.
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“We submitted 50 years worth of evidence . showing that the only times anyone has ever been able to comply with these requirements is when they spent a significant amount of money to do it.”. via @houstonchron.
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@mcuban @justinamash @justinamash: Every American citizen has an equal right to participate in the political process. Those unclear on the concept should check out the U.S. Constitution, Amendments 1 & 14.
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Court: It’s too hard for independents to make ballot
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"puts the burden on the voter to vote strategically"--a polite way of saying "suppresses participation by everyone but Dems and Reps." Are those "realities of system" immutable, or can they be structured to encourage participation by all voters, even those who dissent? @fairvote.
A 1st-past-the-post-system puts the burden on the voter to vote strategically in order to avoid helping the candidate liked least by the majority win by plurality. Spoiler candidates try to convince voters they shouldn’t vote strategically, in defiance of the realities of system.
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Check it out -- 1 state down, 19 to go?.#voterchoice.
Can't miss show tonight! We are getting an update on our fight for FULL ballot access and the legal battles happening now. Join guests Oliver Hall, founder of @voterchoice, and Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News!. 7pm EST. Click SET REMINDER.
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This could be big. These are serious folks who know partisan politics -- and the challenges facing them. #ForwardParty @AndrewYang @MilesTaylorUSA.
It’s on!! #ForwardParty 🚀🇺🇸
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But since the @nytimes piece is so heavy on #GOP efforts to help @GreenPartyUS, @maggieNYT, @dannyhakim and @NYTnickc should know the lengths to which Democrats have gone to stifle #voterchoice:. 2/2.
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Calling all #Maine #Libertarians: @LP_Maine needs to hear from you! In 2018 Maine changed Libertarian voters' registration to independent. We're in federal court to change it back -- contact @LP_Maine now!.
ATTENTION: If you were registered Libertarian in Maine, email register@lpme.org to inform the state you want to stay registered!.
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@johnlegend @mcuban @jonshonric @andraydomise And take a look at the barriers independents and new parties face in Texas: It takes $500,000 or more just to get on the ballot. Money shouldn't decide who can participate. That's why poll taxes and mandatory filing fees were struck down.
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