Independent Voter Podcast

Democrats and MAGA Are Working Together on THIS (Not What You Expect)

You'd think Democrats and MAGA Republicans agree on nothing - but they just quietly teamed up to do one specific thing: shut 7 million California independent voters out of the primary. We're naming names. Chad, Cara, and Shawn break down the bipartisan effort to undo California's top-two nonpartisan primary - with Democratic consultant Steve Maviglio and former CA GOP director Ron Nehring leading the charge, joined improbably by Lorena Gonzalez on the left and Carl DeMaio on the right. Politico just covered the More Choice California Coalition fighting back, and the crew gets into why "voter confusion" is a manufactured talking point. Chad lays out the 115-year reform fight, Cara walks through which constitutional candidates actually responded to IVP's survey (and which Secretary of State conveniently didn't), and Shawn covers DC's city council quietly defunding Initiative 83 after 73% of voters passed it.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project [https://independentvoterproject.org] and produced by Olas Media [http://olasmedia.com].  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us [https://ivn.us]  and https://independentvoterproject.org [https://independentvoterproject.org]  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – Are California Parties Trying to Shut Out Independent Voters? 00:00:33 – The Growing Fight Over California’s Top Two Primary 00:01:45 – Why Democrats and Republicans Both Want Control Back 00:03:03 – Polling, Political Strategy, and the Battle Over Open Primaries 00:04:30 – Why California’s Primary System Confuses Independent Voters 00:06:56 – The Real Strategy Behind Closed Primaries 00:08:00 – Who Owns Elections: Political Parties or the Voters? 00:09:42 – Is California Really Becoming a One-Party State? 00:12:53 – New Data Shows Independents Surpassing Republicans in California 00:15:29 – Candidates Respond to Independent Voter Rights Survey Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ [https://ivn.us/podcasts/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

The Bipartisan Plot to Lock 6.2 Million California Voters Out of Elections

Chad, Cara, and Shawn break down the brewing bipartisan campaign to repeal California's Top Two primary - exactly the move IVP has been predicting for months. They unpack the manufactured "two Republicans in the top two" panic, why Shirley Weber and party leadership keep siding against independent voters, and why the academic research (yes, including Cambridge) backs Top Two. Then Ethan drops fresh IVP polling out of LA - Spencer Pratt, Karen Bass, and a governor's race where Steve Hilton is suddenly playing for Trump's endorsement instead of reform. The conversation closes with gerrymandering, Prop 50 fallout, and why packing districts may have accidentally handed independents more power than ever.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project [https://independentvoterproject.org] and produced by Olas Media [http://olasmedia.com].  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us [https://ivn.us]  and https://independentvoterproject.org [https://independentvoterproject.org]  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – California Parties Push to Repeal the Top Two Primary 00:02:17 – Why Party Leaders Want Control Back 00:03:25 – The Fight Over Independent Voter Rights 00:05:04 – Closed Primaries vs. More Voter Choice 00:06:07 – Big Money, Party Power, and Democracy Claims 00:08:09 – How Top Two Changed California Politics 00:12:13 – The More Choice California Coalition Explained 00:14:02 – Alaska, Ranked Choice Voting, and Reform Momentum 00:17:16 – Polarization, Voter Exhaustion, and Broken Incentives 00:20:14 – New Polling, Independent Voters, and the 2026 Governor Race Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ [https://ivn.us/podcasts/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

The TRUTH About California's "Jungle" Primary (Democrats are WRONG)

Cara and Shawn break down the manufactured "jungle primary" panic out of California (there's roughly an 8% chance of a two-Republican general), then get into Alaska's Top Four success story, Wes Moore's surprise open-primary moment on Bill Maher and the awkward walkback that followed, and a Supreme Court bombshell out of Louisiana that just got an entire election canceled. Chad Peace jumps in to explain why the courts police racial gerrymandering but won't touch partisan gerrymandering - and what that means for independent voters.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project [https://independentvoterproject.org] and produced by Olas Media [http://olasmedia.com].  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us [https://ivn.us]  and https://independentvoterproject.org [https://independentvoterproject.org]  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – Debate Fallout and Top Two Primary Controversy 00:02:20 – Ballots Drop and the Governor’s Race Heats Up 00:03:07 – The “Two Republicans” Narrative Explained 00:04:44 – How Top Two Actually Works vs “Jungle Primary” Myth 00:07:30 – Reform Options: Top Four, Top Five, and Alaska Model 00:10:18 – Wes Moore, Independents, and Political Incentives 00:13:53 – Closed Primaries and Power Behind the Scenes 00:19:23 – Supreme Court Ruling and Redistricting Fallout 00:24:25 – Gerrymandering, Race, and Partisan Advantage 00:28:02 – Independent Voters and the Fight for Equal Voting Rights Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ [https://ivn.us/podcasts/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

California Governor Debate BRUTAL Reaction: "Playing Their Cartoon Selves"

Cara McCormick sits down with former California state senator Steve Peace - author of the Top Two primary law - to react to the California governor's race debate. They unpack the most memorable moments (Becerra's "Steve Hilton's daddy" line, Hilton waving the insurance statute at Becerra on stage, Katie Porter catching Tom Steyer on his own contradiction), why the moderators' yes-or-no format is killing real debate, and why Peace says "there's no longer a constituency for governance." From there, the conversation traces a pattern Peace has watched play out for 30 years - the same playbook that wrecked California's insurance market and energy market is now hitting housing - and ends on why Prop 50, the "jungle primary" smear campaign, and the death of citizen government all connect back to one thing: partisan primaries.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project [https://independentvoterproject.org] and produced by Olas Media [http://olasmedia.com].  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us [https://ivn.us]  and https://independentvoterproject.org [https://independentvoterproject.org]  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – The Case for the Political Middle Ground 00:01:05 – California Governor’s Race and Undecided Voters 00:03:00 – Partisan Narratives vs Real Governance 00:07:30 – Debate Culture, Soundbites, and Media Incentives 00:12:30 – Why Yes/No Politics Fails Complex Issues 00:19:00 – Cost of Living, Regulation, and Policy Tradeoffs 00:28:40 – Housing Crisis and the “Abundance” Debate 00:34:30 – How Partisan Primaries Distort Democracy 00:43:00 – The Collapse of Bipartisan Problem-Solving 00:56:00 – Open Primaries and the Future of Elections   Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ [https://ivn.us/podcasts/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

Why California's Governor Race Is a Trap for Both Parties (Trump Endorses Hilton)

Breaking down Steve Hilton's Trump endorsement, why two Republicans advancing is never going to happen, and how Democrats may be using that fake threat to dismantle nonpartisan primaries altogether. Plus: the Swalwell rumors making waves before June 2nd, a Green Party candidate kicked off the ballot over tax returns, and where the massive undecided independent voter bloc actually lands. This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project [https://independentvoterproject.org] and produced by Olas Media [http://olasmedia.com].  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us [https://ivn.us]  and https://independentvoterproject.org [https://independentvoterproject.org]  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 - Independent Voter Podcast opening 00:00:23 - California Governor's Race 2026: Trump Endorses Steve Hilton & Poll Manipulation Exposed 00:06:18 - Eric Swalwell Scandal & Green Party Candidate Removed From California Ballot 00:09:02 - Trump Tariffs & Iran War: How One Truth Social Post Moves the Stock Market 00:10:57 - US Coast Guard Unpaid for 50 Days & FEMA Official Claims Divine Teleportation 00:17:36 - Trump Threatens to Destroy Iran Next to the Easter Bunny: 25th Amendment Calls Grow 00:20:50 - California Voter ID 2026: Clean State Bill vs. Trump's Federal Voter ID Law Explained 00:23:42 - How Democrats & Republicans Both Use Voter ID to Divide Voters Instead of Fix It 00:28:43 - Ranked Choice Voting Updates, Colorado Gerrymandering & Campaign Finance Amendment Hits 25 States 00:34:20 - Why Independent Voters Are Done With the Two-Party System & What's Actually Changing Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ [https://ivn.us/podcasts/] See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.