Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Bids for open primaries falling short in both Florida and Alaska

Florida voter

While a majority of Florida voters supported moving to an open primary system, the total wasn't enough to grant approval.

Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images

Ballot measures that would have opened primaries to all voters, and advanced the top vote-getters to the November ballot regardless of party, appear destined for defeat in both the biggest politically purple state and the physically biggest state.

While a solid majority of Floridians voted to allow every voter to participate in the often crucial nominating contests, the measure came up about 30,000 votes short of the three-fifths supermajority required. A similar proposal in Alaska was garnering only 43 support with four in five precincts reporting Wednesday.

Republican and Democratic leaders generally oppose open primaries, which would dilute their dominance over elections by taking away the guarantee one candidate from each would make the November ballot. Supporters maintain the overriding benefit for democracy is giving more of a voice to the huge blocks of voters (pluralities in some states) that don't align with the major parties — and to candidates who have broken free of the duopoly.


Both states are among the few that require voters to register with one of the two major parties if they want to vote in primaries. Most places allow some sort of crossover or independent participation. These are the details of the proposals:

Florida

While the proposal came up short, garnering 57 percent, proponents were heartened by the broad support it received from Republicans, Democrats and independents. More than 5.8 million people voted for the measure — more than who cast ballots for either President Trump, who carried the state, or former Vice President Joe Biden.

The measure's defeat means Florida's current primary system will stay intact, only allowing voters registered with a major party to participate. This system does not permit the state's 3.8 unaffiliated voters (30 percent of the electorate) to have a say in which candidates make it on the November ballot.

Open Primaries, the national group advocating for electoral reform, said although Florida was a heartbreaking loss, it remains committed to pushing for change next year and beyond. Their argument is that open primaries make the political system work better by rewarding candidates who appeal to the center instead of to the red or blue bases. Critics say that may be true, but often at the expense of Black and Latino candidates.

Alaska

The outcome of a sweeping democracy reform initiative had not yet been called since officials were still counting ballots in a fifth of the precincts. Results may take days to finalize, but the current margin of 23,000 votes will be tough to overcome.

The measure would open up congressional and state government primaries to all voters, regardless of party, starting in 2022. Many voters in Alaska aren't affiliated with either major party, so proponents of this expansion say it would ensure their voices are heard.

In addition to open primaries, the initiative would have also established ranked-choice voting for statewide races and bolstered transparency around political spending.

Read More

Is Bombing Iran Deja Vu All Over Again?

The B-2 "Spirit" Stealth Bomber flys over the 136th Rose Parade Presented By Honda on Jan. 1, 2025, in Pasadena, California. (Jerod Harris/Getty Images/TNS)

Jerod Harris/Getty Images/TNS)

Is Bombing Iran Deja Vu All Over Again?

After a short and successful war with Iraq, President George H.W. Bush claimed in 1991 that “the ghosts of Vietnam have been laid to rest beneath the sands of the Arabian desert.” Bush was referring to what was commonly called the “Vietnam syndrome.” The idea was that the Vietnam War had so scarred the American psyche that we forever lost confidence in American power.

The elder President Bush was partially right. The first Iraq war was certainly popular. And his successor, President Clinton, used American power — in the former Yugoslavia and elsewhere — with the general approval of the media and the public.

Keep ReadingShow less
Conspiratorial Thinking Isn’t Growing–Its Consequences Are
a close up of a typewriter with the word conspiracy on it

Conspiratorial Thinking Isn’t Growing–Its Consequences Are

The Comet Ping Pong Pizzagate shooting, the plot to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and a man’s livestreamed beheading of his father last year were all fueled by conspiracy theories. But while the headlines suggest that conspiratorial thinking is on the rise, this is not the case. Research points to no increase in conspiratorial thinking. Still, to a more dangerous reality: the conspiracies taking hold and being amplified by political ideologues are increasingly correlated with violence against particular groups. Fortunately, promising new research points to actions we can take to reduce conspiratorial thinking in communities across the US.

Some journalists claim that this is “a golden age of conspiracy theories,” and the public agrees. As of 2022, 59% of Americans think that people are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories today than 25 years ago, and 73% of Americans think conspiracy theories are “out of control.” Most blame this perceived increase on the role of social media and the internet.

Keep ReadingShow less
Why a College Degree No Longer Guarantees a Good Job
woman wearing academic cap and dress selective focus photography
Photo by MD Duran on Unsplash

Why a College Degree No Longer Guarantees a Good Job

A college education used to be considered, along with homeownership, one of the key pillars of the American Dream. Is that still the case? Recent experiences of college graduates seeking employment raise questions about whether a university diploma remains the best pathway to pursuing happiness, as it once was.

Consider the case of recent grad Lohanny Santo, whose TikTok video went viral with over 3.6 million “likes” as she broke down in tears and vented her frustration over her inability to find even a minimum wage job. That was despite her dual degrees from Pace University and her ability to speak three languages. John York, a 24-year-old with a master’s degree in math from New York University, writes that “it feels like I am screaming into the void with each application I am filling out.”

Keep ReadingShow less