Independent Voter Podcast

Olas Media
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Politics
  • Updated Weekly

Tired of being told what to think by partisan gatekeepers? So are we.The Independent Voter Podcast brings you conversations that challenge the two-party echo chamber and reject the false binaries dominating today’s political narratives. We focus on two things: (1) Election reforms that increase real competition and voter choice, and (2) Policy issues that defy the black-and-white frameworks set by national party agendas. We’ve been called everything: liberals, undercover Republicans, progressives, socialists, libertarians—even anarchists. And depending on the article, they’re all true.We are open to any voice that follows our simple etiquette. If you believe political independence is a mindset, not a middle ground, you’re in the right place.This the Independent Voter Podcast..

  1. Why Latino Voters Backed Trump - Then Mamdani (NOT What You Think) | Mike Madrid - EP47

    6d ago

    Why Latino Voters Backed Trump - Then Mamdani (NOT What You Think) | Mike Madrid - EP47

    The same young Latino voters who swung to Donald Trump in 2024 just handed New York to Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani - and no, they haven't changed their minds about anything. Strategist Mike Madrid explains why the fastest-growing bloc in American politics is walking out on both parties at once.  Madrid - author of The Latino Century - joins the show to blow up the way both parties read the Latino vote. His case: what looks like voters lurching right, then left, then right again is actually a dealignment - a conscious rejection of the entire two-party system, driven by class and generation far more than ethnicity. The crew digs into California's Latino turnout surge behind Becerra, why New York's closed primaries produced a dismal 9% turnout, and what really went down at the first-ever National Latino Summit in D.C. Stick around for his blunt advice on how voters can break the cycle of partisanship. Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us https://independentvoterproject.org 00:00:00 – The Latino Vote: America's Most Misunderstood Bloc00:01:04 – Dealignment, Not Realignment: Leaving Both Parties00:03:00 – It's Not Ethnic — Latinos Vote Their Class00:04:44 – The Turnout Story: California Surges, New York Flatlines00:09:32 – Inside the First-Ever National Latino Summit00:13:24 – Conscious Disaffiliation and the Under-30 Surge00:16:24 – Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, and Starving Voters00:18:06 – Are Latinos Really Going Socialist?00:20:22 – Adams to Trump to Mamdani in Four Years00:23:24 – The Fix Nobody Wants to Hear: Leave Your Party00:30:04 – The Voting-Rights Case Headed to Court00:34:06 – Mike's Book, Substack, and Where to Follow Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    35 min
  2. TRUTH: 40% of NYC Democrats Aren't Really Democrats | Jeremy Gruber - EP46

    Jun 25

    TRUTH: 40% of NYC Democrats Aren't Really Democrats | Jeremy Gruber - EP46

    We sit down with Jeremy, Senior VP of Open Primaries, to dig into a new IVP/Open Primaries poll of registered NYC Democrats - and what it reveals is wild. Jeremy lays out "the big lie" about open vs. closed primaries, why ~40% of NYC Democrats (and two out of three Latino Democrats) don't identify with the party they're registered in, and how a 10% turnout primary ends up deciding who actually runs the city. Then Jeremy lays out why almost everyone - the media, secretaries of state, even civil rights groups - has the importance of primaries exactly backwards. This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project and produced by Olas Media.  🎙️ The Independent Voter Podcast now has its own YouTube channel! If you enjoy these conversations, subscribe to our dedicated channel for full episodes, interviews, and future content:  https://youtube.com/@independentvoterpodcast? Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us https://independentvoterproject.org Follow and subscribe on audio platforms: https://open.spotify.com/show/1VnqtqjZh9EbmDtVxvHF3R https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/independent-voter-podcast/id1680559155 Chapters: 00:00:00 – Independent Voters: The Largest Group Nobody Knows 00:00:49 – Introducing Jeremy Gruber & the NYC Poll 00:01:37 – The Big Lie About Open Primaries 00:02:37 – Why Democrats Register as Democrats Without Being Democrats 00:04:27 – Low Turnout and Who Actually Wins 00:07:35 – When the System Opens But Voters Still Don't Know 00:10:01 – Two-Step Reform: Policy Change and Voter Education 00:12:33 – How the System Is Stacked Against Primary Awareness 00:15:35 – Independent Organizing and What Comes Next 00:17:59 – Open Primaries' Litigation, Wins, and Where to Follow Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    20 min
  3. She Quit Her Party. Then She Couldn't Vote. | Lisa Rice. - EP45

    Jun 18

    She Quit Her Party. Then She Couldn't Vote. | Lisa Rice. - EP45

    Lisa D.T. Rice, the driving force behind DC's Initiative 83 to permit ranked choice voting and open primaries, joins the show to explain how a missing ballot turned her into one of the most relentless reformers in the country. She breaks down why closed primaries are really a voting-rights problem, how she took on two fights at once - open primaries and ranked choice voting - in the heart of a 95% one-party city, and how rooting reform in everyday issues like food deserts is what actually wins elections. Then comes the gut-punch: voters passed her initiative with 73%, and she still couldn't cast a ballot. Stick around for the protest she threw in response, the go-go song she commissioned to troll the city council, and the lawsuit threat she says she "wouldn't put past someone."  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us  and https://independentvoterproject.org  Follow and subscribe on audio platforms:https://open.spotify.com/show/1VnqtqjZh9EbmDtVxvHF3Rhttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/independent-voter-podcast/id1680559155 Chapters: 00:00:00 – Why Independent Voters Are Shut Out of Elections00:01:07 – Meet Lisa Rice and the Fight for DC Reform00:03:10 – Discovering the Cost of Leaving a Political Party00:04:21 – Open Primaries as a Voting Rights Issue00:06:10 – Taking on Washington, DC’s Political Establishment00:07:35 – How Initiative 83 Won with 73% of the Vote00:09:47 – Connecting Election Reform to Community Needs00:11:20 – Court Battles, Ranked Choice Voting, and What Comes Next00:13:24 – The “Picket at the Thicket” Protest for Voter Access00:15:28 – Building a Movement for Independent Voters and Reform Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    23 min
  4. Trump Says Fraud. Here's What ACTUALLY Happened in California. - EP44

    Jun 11

    Trump Says Fraud. Here's What ACTUALLY Happened in California. - EP44

    This week, Chad, Shawn, and Cara break down the five-day vote count that knocked Spencer Pratt out of the LA mayoral runoff - and why "fraud" is the wrong story. Cara walks through her viral article on Tom Steyer's $216 million spend, the DSA/progressive turnout machine, and how legal ballot harvesting in high-density neighborhoods delivered the late surge for Nithya Raman. Then the crew zooms out to the California governor's race, the bad-faith attacks on top-two primaries, and the record independent (NPP) turnout nobody's covering. Plus: Maine's remarkably civil ranked-choice governor's primary, a fight over slow vote counts that even the New York Times is picking, and a court challenge that could revive open primaries in Oklahoma.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us  and https://independentvoterproject.org  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – Ballot Harvesting, Fraud Claims & the LA Mayor's Race 00:04:38 – How Ballot Harvesting Works & the Steyer Ground Game 00:09:25 – Progressive Alliances, Nonprofits & Unreported Spending 00:13:27 – NPP Voters Surge & the Real Purpose of Top Two 00:17:34 – California Governor's Race: Becerra & Hilton Advance 00:20:14 – Party Operatives, Media Bait & the Top Two Debate 00:24:50 – Maine Ranked Choice Voting & the Governor's Race 00:29:53 – California's Ballot Counting Timeline & the Postmark Debate 00:34:46 – Election Suspicion, Transparency & the Nine-Day Window 00:36:45 – Oklahoma's Open Primary Signature Fight Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    42 min
  5. Critics PROVED WRONG About the “Top-Two” Primary in California (It WORKS) - EP43

    Jun 4

    Critics PROVED WRONG About the “Top-Two” Primary in California (It WORKS) - EP43

    Fresh off the California gubernatorial primary, Chad, Cara, and Ethan break down why the "top-two will produce two Republicans" narrative was a manufactured fear - and why it collapsed the moment voters actually voted, with Steve Hilton and Xavier Becerra heading toward a traditional R-vs-D general. They dig into who was pushing that panic and why (fundraising, juicing turnout, and a quiet war on top-two itself), including the uncomfortable detail that a party chair reportedly asked a leading minority candidate to drop out. Stick around for the bigger question the reform movement keeps dodging - and a pitch for what could come after top-two.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us  and https://independentvoterproject.org  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – Independent Voters Win the Jungle Primary 00:00:51 – California Primary Results: Hilton vs. Becerra & Steyer's $200M Loss 00:03:37 – Tom Steyer's Campaign: Ranked Choice Voting & Positive Politics 00:07:32 – What if California Had Top Four + Ranked Choice Voting? 00:09:33 – Latino Voters & the Open Primary: 80% Want to Keep It 00:11:45 – The "Two Republicans" Scare: Manufactured Fear & Biased Polling 00:14:47 – Why Both Parties Hate Top Two — and That's Exactly Why It Works 00:16:26 – Where Does the Right to Vote Come From? The Core Question of Reform 00:18:22 – Reforming the Reform: The Case for Top Four + RCV in California 00:22:13 – Republicans, Relevance & the Self-Inflicted Wound of Closing Primaries   Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    29 min
  6. How Party Insiders KILLED Florida's Open Primary (57% of Voters Said YES) - EP42

    May 28

    How Party Insiders KILLED Florida's Open Primary (57% of Voters Said YES) - EP42

    57% of Floridians voted to open their primaries. They still lost. Chad Peace and Cara McCormick sit down with Political No Brainer host Jeff Rabinowitz to unpack how Florida's two-party system buries voting reform - and the closed-primary lawsuit now knocking on the Supreme Court's door.  This episode is sponsored by the Independent Voter Project and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us and https://independentvoterproject.org  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – Are Political Parties Just “Make Wrong Machines”? 00:01:03 – Meet Jeff Rabinowitz and the Political No Brainer Podcast 00:02:00 – Florida’s Closed Primaries and Independent Voters 00:02:51 – Why Florida Requires 60% for Constitutional Amendments 00:04:19 – Millions of Independent Voters Locked Out 00:05:29 – Why Independent Candidates Struggle in Florida 00:06:49 – The Florida Supreme Court Challenge on Voting Rights 00:09:11 – Is Florida Really as Partisan as the Media Says? 00:11:21 – Guns, Culture, and Political Identity in Florida 00:14:07 – Jeff Rabinowitz’s Advice for Independent-Minded Voters 00:16:18 – What Does It Mean to Be “Independent Minded”? 00:18:54 – Why Voting for Independents Matters Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    20 min
  7. Democrats and MAGA Are Working Together on THIS (Not What You Expect) - EP41

    May 21

    Democrats and MAGA Are Working Together on THIS (Not What You Expect) - EP41

    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 and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us  and 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/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    24 min
  8. The Bipartisan Plot to Lock 6.2 Million California Voters Out of Elections. - EP40

    May 14

    The Bipartisan Plot to Lock 6.2 Million California Voters Out of Elections. - EP40

    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 and produced by Olas Media.  Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at: https://ivn.us  and https://independentvoterproject.org  Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Chapters: 00:00:00 – California Parties Push to Repeal the Top Two Primary00:02:17 – Why Party Leaders Want Control Back00:03:25 – The Fight Over Independent Voter Rights00:05:04 – Closed Primaries vs. More Voter Choice00:06:07 – Big Money, Party Power, and Democracy Claims00:08:09 – How Top Two Changed California Politics00:12:13 – The More Choice California Coalition Explained00:14:02 – Alaska, Ranked Choice Voting, and Reform Momentum00:17:16 – Polarization, Voter Exhaustion, and Broken Incentives00:20:14 – New Polling, Independent Voters, and the 2026 Governor Race Support the show: https://ivn.us/podcasts/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    40 min
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About

Tired of being told what to think by partisan gatekeepers? So are we.The Independent Voter Podcast brings you conversations that challenge the two-party echo chamber and reject the false binaries dominating today’s political narratives. We focus on two things: (1) Election reforms that increase real competition and voter choice, and (2) Policy issues that defy the black-and-white frameworks set by national party agendas. We’ve been called everything: liberals, undercover Republicans, progressives, socialists, libertarians—even anarchists. And depending on the article, they’re all true.We are open to any voice that follows our simple etiquette. If you believe political independence is a mindset, not a middle ground, you’re in the right place.This the Independent Voter Podcast..

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