Cara McCormick, principal at Smart Campaigns, advises on strategy and research. With 10+ years in major races, she led Maine’s historic move to ranked choice voting. Her work focuses on election reforms that improve representation and voter choice.
Election Reform
For the third time in history, New York City voters used ranked choice voting (RCV) to determine their party nominees in Tuesday’s citywide primary elections. First implemented in 2021, the system was used in that year’s highly competitive Democratic primary, where Eric Adams ultimately secured the
Cannabis
On June 23, 2025, Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott shocked lawmakers and lobbyists alike by vetoing Senate Bill 3 (SB 3), a measure that would have banned hemp-derived THC products across the state. He also called for a special session to bring lawmakers back to Austin on July 21 to craft regu
Public Safety
The United States is facing a disturbing resurgence of politically motivated violence, targeted attacks not just on individuals, but on the democratic fabric of the nation itself. Over the past several years, elected officials, public servants, and civilians have been stalked, firebombed, shot, and
Cannabis
California has just proposed a sweeping new rule to permanently ban intoxicating hemp products — and Texas may soon follow, as Governor Greg Abbott (R) faces a June 22 deadline to sign or veto a similar bill.
Election Reform
Republican lawmakers, political groups, and donors are going to attempt to qualify a constitutional amendment for California’s November 2026 ballot that would require voters to present government-issued identification and verify their citizenship before casting a ballot.
Opinion
For nearly a decade, foreign policy analysts, former generals, and everyday citizens have been asking a once-unthinkable question: Is World War III on the horizon? Now, the question may not be whether it's coming, but whether it has already begun.
Election Reform
Showing an independent streak in keeping with Maine’s political tradition, Sen. Rick Bennett (R–Oxford) broke ranks with his party this week to join 91 Democrats in supporting a bill that would finally fulfill the will of Maine voters: implementing ranked choice voting (RCV) in all state general ele
Public Safety
The health care crisis behind bars affects two distinct but deeply connected groups: incarcerated individuals and correctional officers. While incarcerated people are constitutionally entitled to care, access remains inconsistent, and most enter custody with significant medical and mental health nee
Public Safety
What began as peaceful immigration policy protests on June 6 has escalated into a national political crisis, with violent clashes, arrests, looted businesses, burning Waymo cars, a smashed government building, nighttime curfews, and an epic legal showdown between California officials and President D
Election Reform
On May 20, the Maine House of Representatives voted 76–71 to withdraw the state from the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), reversing course just over a year after Maine became the 17th jurisdiction to join the agreement.
Campaigns
A crowded field of nine Democratic candidates will take the stage tonight, June 4, in the first official debate of the 2025 New York City mayoral primary. Held at NBC’s 30 Rock studios and co-sponsored by the city’s Campaign Finance Board, NBC 4 New York, Telemundo 47, and POLITICO New York, the deb
Campaigns
In a significant early endorsement in Maine’s 2026 governor’s race, US Senator Bernie Sanders has thrown his support behind Troy Jackson, the former Maine Senate President and longtime champion of working-class issues and political reform.