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

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.&nbsp;
This episode is sponsored by the<a href="https://independentvoterproject.org"> Independent Voter Project</a> and produced by<a href="http://olasmedia.com"> Olas Media</a>.&nbsp;
Listen to more episodes and read in-depth coverage at:<a href="https://ivn.us"> https://ivn.us</a><a href="https://independentvoterproject.org">&nbsp; and https://independentvoterproject.org</a>&nbsp;
Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
Chapters:
00:00:00 &ndash; Ballot Harvesting, Fraud Claims &amp; the LA Mayor's Race
00:04:38 &ndash; How Ballot Harvesting Works &amp; the Steyer Ground Game
00:09:25 &ndash; Progressive Alliances, Nonprofits &amp; Unreported Spending
00:13:27 &ndash; NPP Voters Surge &amp; the Real Purpose of Top Two
00:17:34 &ndash; California Governor's Race: Becerra &amp; Hilton Advance
00:20:14 &ndash; Party Operatives, Media Bait &amp; the Top Two Debate
00:24:50 &ndash; Maine Ranked Choice Voting &amp; the Governor's Race
00:29:53 &ndash; California's Ballot Counting Timeline &amp; the Postmark Debate
00:34:46 &ndash; Election Suspicion, Transparency &amp; the Nine-Day Window
00:36:45 &ndash; Oklahoma's Open Primary Signature Fight

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..

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&rsquo;s political narratives. We focus on two things: &nbsp;(1)&nbsp;Election reforms that increase real competition and voter choice, and &nbsp;(2)&nbsp;Policy issues that defy the black-and-white frameworks set by national party agendas.
We&rsquo;ve been called everything: liberals, undercover Republicans, progressives, socialists, libertarians&mdash;even anarchists. And depending on the article, they&rsquo;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&rsquo;re in the right place. This the Independent Voter Podcast..

Independent Voter Podcast

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.

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&rsquo;s political narratives. We focus on two things: &nbsp;(1)&nbsp;Election reforms that increase real competition and voter choice, and &nbsp;(2)&nbsp;Policy issues that defy the black-and-white frameworks set by national party agendas.
We&rsquo;ve been called everything: liberals, undercover Republicans, progressives, socialists, libertarians&mdash;even anarchists. And depending on the article, they&rsquo;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&rsquo;re in the right place. This the Independent Voter Podcast.