Newsletter: Misunderstood Independents
Independent voters in New Mexico remind us what all independents have in common, but no one else seems to understand.
Can I run a number by you?
317.
317 people have shared their stories with LetUsVote. 317 independent voters from across the country, with different life experiences, different reasons for being independent, and different relationships with their political identity.
These are ordinary people - not partisans, not politicians. Just normal folks, like you and me.
Which is why it blows me away when we go to a new place, and meet new people, and again, we hear this one feeling from each and every independent. Every. Single. Time.
And you know what? No one seems to realize this about independents.
But we'll get to that in a minute.
Today, I'm proud to release our brand new video of independent voters from New Mexico, and tell you that crazy thing we keep hearing.
If you want to join the project and help us tell the story of independent voters, it'd mean the world if you share your story.
Let's roll.
LetUsVote Newsletter: misunderstood independents.
Okay, let's start with the fun. See if you can spot the trend that we keep seeing, but non-independents don't seem to understand. It's right here in our brand new video about independent voters in New Mexico. Click the pic below (or click here) to watch:
My colleague - the incredible Sila Avcil of New Mexico Open Elections - spent three days interviewing independent voters in New Mexico. Every stripe of independent? She spoke to 'em.
You've got your lifers who have been independent since the day they registered to vote. You have former Republicans who left the party ten minutes ago, ten years ago, or some time in between. There are socialists who think the Democratic Party has been corporatized, and centrists who think the Democratic Party has taken a turn to the left.
You've got it all.
So you watched the video above. You have your theories. Let's see if they line up: what do these different kinds of people have in common that no one seems to understand?
Independents believe in voting for people over political party.
And most of us - probably 95% - believe political identity shouldn't dictate whether we're granted our constitutional right to vote.
This seems trivial. It might seem like empty rhetoric. And I wish it was - it should be empty rhetoric. It should be universally subscribed. But it's not. I spend far too much time on Twitter/X/whatever they're calling themselves advocating for independent voting rights. Take a quick scroll through my replies: many believe that power should live in the hands of the partisans.
Independents need a place to call their own. That's what we're building here at LetUsVote: a place by independents, for independents.
On Wednesday, I'm going to share a new community with you: a new spot for the LetUsVote community - and all independent voters - to spend some time. It's a place for you to call home. And I can't wait to open the door for you there.
Chat on Wednesday. But first: c'mon! Share your story with us:
Share: Why Are You Independent?
If you aren't already, make sure you're following LetUsVote on YouTube, Instagram, X/Twitter or Facebook, where we're sharing these stories almost every single day.
Okay, that's it for today.
If you support what we're doing here at LetUsVote, please know that any contribution - big or small - helps us keep up the work of building a unique and totally new community for independent voters. It would mean the world if you can contribute.
Thank you for all you do.
Sincerely,
Campaign Director - LetUsVote