Shawn is an election reform expert and National Editor of IVN.us. He studied history and philosophy at the University of North Texas. He joined the IVN team in 2012.
News
Republican Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry stirred controversy earlier this week when it was revealed that one of his legislative priorities is to dismantle the state's nonpartisan election system and transition to party-run primaries. Although the exact details of Landry's proposal have not been released to the
News
The Democratic Party is facing criticism over recent decisions that diminish the role of voters in the democratic process. The cancellation of the presidential primary in Florida and the exclusion of challengers to incumbent President Joe Biden from primary ballots in various states were just the st
Election Reform
As the political landscape in the United States gears up for the 2024 presidential election, the media's focus is often on the perceived threats to democracy posed by individual candidates or movements, like the rhetoric around the MAGA crowd and former President Donald Trump, who is treated as the
Election Reform
A new book is slated to hit the shelves in February by former congressional candidate and Unite America Executive Director Nick Troiano, which details the fundamental problem with the US's unrepresentative and hyper-polarized political system and where change must begin: the primaries.
Election Reform
The Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) has fined Anchorage pastor Art Mathias and the anti-ranked choice voting and anti-open primaries groups he founded nearly $100k for violating several campaign laws in their effort to overturn nonpartisan reform in the state. Members of APOC's staff investigated complaints filed against
News
The Republican and Democratic Parties are in panic mode. They see poll after poll show how unfavorable their candidates are and how appealing a third option in the presidential race is going into the 2024 election cycle, and they are freaking out. For the first time since 1992 the presence
Election Reform
On December 19, the Arlington County Board unanimously voted to use ranked choice voting for all future county board primaries. The decision comes after a survey found that 70% of voters rated their experience with RCV as "positive," "fair," or "exceptional."
News
Former Democratic presidential candidate and Forward Party Co-Founder Andrew Yang sat down with US Rep. Dean Phillips, who announced his presidential campaign in October and seeks to challenge President Joe Biden in the Democratic nomination process. Much of the conversation centered around Phillips' campaign, but the congressman also talked
News
Photo Credit: Arizona Department of Transportation / Flickr Any substantial change to how US voters elect their representatives must start from a fundamental principle. For former Phoenix Mayor Paul Johnson this fundamental principle is that all voters should have an equal and meaningful voice in the electoral process. In Open Primaries&
Campaigns
Regardless of how one feels about Robert F Kennedy’s political positions or presidential candidacy, nationwide surveys continue to show that he could have the biggest showing of any alternative choice in a presidential race than any candidate since Ross Perot in 1992. What’s more, a new poll shows
Election Reform
A Florida attorney has filed a lawsuit against the state's Democratic Party and Secretary of State Cord Byrd seeking an immediate and mandatory injunction that would require US Rep. Dean Phillips' name to be put on the 2024 Democratic presidential primary ballot. Last week, IVN published a
News
American Enterprise Institute's Kevin R Kosar recently hosted a panel to discuss why all segments of voters should support structural electoral reform efforts happening across the country. The conversation took place not long after Kosar published a detailed report on why conservatives, in particular, should support these efforts.