Reform Party Going for Utah Ballot, Independents Speak Out

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATES, PARTIES AND MOVEMENTS

• Group circulating petitions to get Reform Party on the Utah ballot (By Nkoyo Iyamba, Deseret News) "When Ross Perot ran in 1992, there were two states that he came in second in the polls," said state party organizer Jaime Dives. "One of those states was Maine and the other state was Utah." Dives is circulating petitions to get the Reform Party on the Utah ballot for the 2012 election cycle. She needs 2,000 signatures from registered voters by Feb. 15.
• Political parties challenged to race to register voters (By Lee Davidson, The Salt Lake Tribune) While Republicans and Democrats already have said they plan major voter registration drives this year, Randy Miller, president of the Utah League of Independent Voters, appeared at the news conference to say his group also will push to register more people as unaffiliated voters.
• Libertarian Party of Florida hosting major Presidential Debate in Orlando (Karl Dickey, West Palm Beach Libertarian Examiner) The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the US, and is influential in both the Tea Party and Occupy movements due to their strong fiscal conservative positions and socially liberal views.   Polling data indicates that as many as 60% of independent voters consider themselves, “fiscally conservative and socially liberal.”

Independent Redistricting: Needed Now More Than Ever

REDISTRICTING

• Eyes on Ariz. as redistricting panel shaken up (By Gregory Korte, USA TODAY) Brewer, a Republican, accused commission Chairwoman Colleen Mathis of putting a priority on making congressional districts competitive at the expense of a "grid-like" map required by the law… Mathis has sued to keep her post, but her removal as the panel's only independent brings a 2-2 deadlock between Democrats and Republicans, who likely won't be agree to enact a map.
• Independent panel needed for redistricting - Despite Justice Department OK, Republican plan still partisan. (Charlotte Observer) Regardless of the outcome, there's a better way to do redistricting. A nonpartisan, independent commission drawing the lines seems the best way to get a voting map that's fair and designed with the voters, not the politicians, in mind.
• New York and Utah (Salt Lake Tribune) Substitute Utah for New York and Gov. Gary Herbert for Gov. Andrew Cuomo and note how this Oct. 26 New York Times editorial applies… Such [independent] commissions exist in Idaho, Montana and Arizona. When will our citizens insist on this?

Utah Voters Try to Weigh In on Redistricting

UTAH
Drawing boundaries: How much influence will public have on redistricting process? (Deseret News) More than 600 Utahns have signed up to try their hand at redrawing the boundaries to reflect the population shifts recorded by the 2010 Census, which gave Utah a new seat in Congress. As of the first week of August, Utahns had used the state's redistricting website to draft 139 valid maps, including more than 100 just for the now-four congressional districts.

Utah Lawmakers Not Listening to Voters on Redistricting

UTAH REDISTRICTING

• Critics say lawmakers don’t listen on redistricting (By Lee Davidson, The Salt Lake Tribune) But the Alliance for a Better Utah, Fair Boundaries and RepresentMeUtah! said Wednesday that lawmakers have not responded well enough, and their maps still protect incumbents more than they keep communities of interest together. They said keeping communities whole is what most commenters in public hearings have said is their top concern.
• Don't ignore what Utahns want in drawing new boundaries, advocates urge (By Lisa Riley Roche, Deseret News) "We're concerned that the public input process has been nothing more than a dog and pony show," said Maryann Martindale, executive director of Alliance for a Better UTAH. "We hope we're wrong, but we don’t think we are."

Utah Independents Give Huntsman 61 Percent Approval Rating

2012

Against Obama, Utahns favor Huntsman over Romney (Salt Lake Tribune/Political Cornflakes) Utah Democrats give Huntsman a 69 percent approval rating and independents offer him a 61 percent approval rating. The former Utah governor would rake in 28 percent of Democrats over Obama, the poll shows, and leads the president among independents by 39 points.