Cara McCormick is a political strategist and principal at Smart Campaigns, where she advises political, nonprofit, and corporate clients on research, communications, and campaign strategy. Cara has wo
Independent Voter Podcast
Steve Peace -- co-founder of the Independent Voter Project and architect of California’s Top Two primary -- breaks down the wide-open California governor’s race and why campaigns still think in party buckets. The hosts dig into open primaries plus ranked-choice, ICE/immigration and civil liberties,
Commentary
Picture a partisan political federal referee standing just offstage of the iconic Saturday Night Live set, just before it's taping before a live audience at 8pm, stopwatch in hand, deciding who belongs in the political conversation and who does not.
Independent Voter Podcast
Does the 4th Amendment protect only U.S. citizens - or everyone on U.S. soil? Chad and Cara dig into warrants, search-and-seizure limits, and how immigration enforcement tests constitutional boundaries. They also weigh the politics of voter ID - why it polls well, how ballot measures get framed, and
California 2026
California’s Assembly District 47 stretches across Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, encompassing the cities of Banning, Beaumont, Calimesa, Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs, Indian Wells, La Quinta, Yucaipa, Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, and the town of Yucca Valley, along with p
California 2026
Stretching across portions of Alameda and Santa Clara Counties, California’s Senate District 10 is one of the state’s economic powerhouses. It includes the cities of Fremont, Hayward, Milpitas, Newark, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, and Union City, as well as portions of San Jose. The district’s economy is
Independent Voter Podcast
A viral question - “Has ICE gone too far?” - turns into a deep dive on immigration enforcement after the Minneapolis shooting of Renee Nicole Good. The team weighs conflicting video narratives, what voters actually want ICE to prioritize, and reports of would-be citizens being turned away at natural
California 2026
The new 58th Assembly District, previously AD60 before California’s 2021 redistricting, is considered the birthplace of California’s citrus industry.
Independent Voters
IVP just conducted the largest ever survey of California independent voters! Cara and Chad break down what NPP voters are really demanding, why insiders fight to keep them sidelined, and how battles over ballot language, gerrymandering, and open primaries in states like Missouri, Nevada, West Virginia, and Alaska could change
Commentary
Verizon Wireless customers across the United States were hit by a major outage on January 14, leaving tens of thousands of phones in “SOS” mode and users unable to make calls, send texts, or access mobile data.
2026 Midterms
Calling for “systemic change,” former Alaska Congresswoman Mary Peltola announced on January 12 that she will run for the U.S. Senate in 2026, setting up one of the most closely watched races in the country. Peltola will challenge incumbent Dan Sullivan in a contest likely to be shaped as much by Al
California
Good intentions often make for compelling policy. But in practice, consequences rarely fall in line as neatly as the ideas that inspired them.
California 2026
A new statewide poll conducted by the Independent Voter Project finds California’s independent voters overwhelmingly support the state’s nonpartisan primary system and express broad dissatisfaction with the direction of state politics.