Letter

Don't take independent voters for granted

Betty Ward, Concord 
June 8, 2007

I’m one of the 44 percent of New Hampshire residents registered as an independent voter.

Watching the Democratic debate was like watching a baseball game - which to me is like watching grass grow. Nothing new. Just the same old pandering to the Democratic base trying to hit the home run to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Independents may as well have been invisible.

When I close my eyes and just listen, it is difficult for me to figure out if I am listening to Republicans or Democrats.

The results of the 2006 midterm elections illustrated the majority anti-war sentiment in the country. The Democrats won control of Congress (and New Hampshire) because they became anti-war, and that turn of events was led by the independents. I was against the war from the outset, and was actively involved in the Howard Dean campaign specifically for that reason. Why no acknowledgement in the debate of independents role in leading the country on this issue?

Perhaps the candidates believe that no matter what, independents will pull a Democratic lever rather than a Republican lever come January, so they have our vote. If that is so, they are miscalculating my vote. The Democrats on stage on Sunday spoke rhetorically about unifying rather than being divisive. Why not start at home?

The Democratic Party should consider unifying and bringing together the citizens of the United States, since large numbers are registering as independents and this constituency will be a major force within the next decade.

BETTY WARD
Concord, NH 

Independents Rule New Hampshire

Partyless, Unpredictable Voters Could Sway Primary...Again

By RICK KLEIN

June 4, 2007 � For all the partisan energy in New Hampshire this week for a pair of presidential debates, the voters who could determine the outcome of the first-in-the-nation primaries don't call themselves Democrats or Republicans.

They're the famously unpredictable New Hampshire independents -- technically, "undeclared" voters -- who in previous elections have boosted the campaigns of politicians who run the ideological gamut from Pat Buchanan and John McCain to Paul Tsongas and Bill Bradley.

Independents' Day

Independents represent by far the fastest-growing portion of the New Hampshire electorate, with their numbers up 62 percent in the past decade.

They now represent 44 percent of registered voters in the Granite State -- more than its share of Republicans or Democrats. Under state law, unaffiliated voters can vote in either party's primary, though not in both.

They represent a singular challenge for all the campaigns: How to reach out to a fickle group -- one that shares little in terms of political leanings -- without alienating the party base?

"They really cross the spectrum from left to right on social and economic issues," said Jacqueline Salit, executive director of The Neo-Independent, a magazine for political independents. "Independents want to have a voice. They want to function as a third voice in American politics, not as a third party, but a third voice."

Iraq War Anger

Early polls suggest that undeclared voters are poised to cast their ballots overwhelmingly in the Democratic primary, in large part because of widespread anger over the Iraq War.

Recent polls by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center suggest that between two-thirds and three-fourths of New Hampshire independents expect to vote in the Democratic primary.

That's potentially bad news for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who is hoping to recapture the formula that led him to an upset victory over George W. Bush in the 2000 New Hampshire primary.

That year, 62 percent of independents chose to vote in the Republican primary, powering a dominating win that McCain will be hard-pressed to repeat, said Andrew Smith, director of the UNH Survey Center.

"The McCain people are thinking they'll get them again, because they'd like to replay the 2000 campaign," Smith said. "But it's catching lightning in a bottle."

Independent voters such as Betty Ward, a third-grade teacher who lives in Concord, said they've soured on McCain because they view him as a too partisan a figure now.

Unlike the "maverick" whose trip on the Straight Talk Express won over New Hampshire in 1999 and 2000, McCain's strong support for the Iraq War and President Bush's leadership leaves Ward saying she'll never support him again.

"I can't believe he's the same person," she said.

Ward is typical in many ways of a New Hampshire independent. After supporting McCain in 2000, she volunteered for Democrat Howard Dean in 2004 and voted for him in the primary.

This year she said that while she may be more inclined to vote for a Democrat because of the war issue, her vote is very much up for grabs. Casting a ballot for a Republican is not out of the question if she believes a GOP candidate is hitting the right notes.

"I don't care what you call yourself -- that's irrelevant to me," Ward said. "I look for someone who differentiates himself from the party, someone who will challenge the party, whatever party that is."

The Outsiders

Though independents in New Hampshire are motivated by a wide range of factors, one common thread in the candidates they've gravitated toward is an interest in "insurgent" candidacies that buck party orthodoxy.

That could be problematic for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., whose campaign is based on the perception of her as the all-but-inevitable nominee.

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and former senator John Edwards, a Democrat from North Carolina, could both see boosts from independents if they portray themselves as agents of change.

On the Republican side, former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee hold the best potential to win over independents, and may convince them to vote in the Republican primary instead of the Democratic one, said Dante Scala, a political science professor at St. Anselm College in Manchester.

"Independents have trended Democratic now in two straight elections in New Hampshire," Scala said. "But someone like a Thompson or a Giuliani could attract a decent proportion of independents."

One problem candidates have in reaching out to independent voters is that there's no sure-fire way to appeal to them, Smith said.

Generally, they're less likely to vote than are Democrats and Republicans, and their unpredictable nature convinces some campaigns that they're better off ignoring them than trying to figure out how to reach them and get them to vote, he said.

This year, some independents are joining forces to make sure their concerns are heard.

With organizing help from the Committee for a Unified Independent Party, a national group that advocates on behalf of independent voters, some New Hampshire independents are planning a series of candidate forums that independents, not the loyal partisans who typically attend Democratic and Republican events, will attend.

Now, they said, they just need commitments from some of the candidates.

"Invite us in for the conversation, that's all we're asking," said Russ Ouellette, 46, a management consultant who lives in Bedford and is helping to organize the forums.

"I can't believe that they don't understand the power of this. They think we're an unpredictable bunch, that we're going to hurt them. But we don't need our own candidate. We'll make our choice based on the best leader, but we're not going to find that best leader if we keep asking them the same questions."

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3242844&page=1
Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures

New Hampshire--Independent activists with New Hampshire 's Committee for an Independent Voice ("CIV-NH") declared victory yesterday for a successful lobbying effort they directed at the NH State Legislature to defeat a bill which would have restricted the rights of independent voters.

“Independents throughout the state delivered the message to legislators that they didn’t like the bill and would hold both parties accountable if it passed,â€Â�  said Betty Ward, a key CIV-NH activist. 

HB 196 would have denied independents the right to re-claim their independent status at the polls immediately after voting in a statewide primary. 

Ward was aided in her lobbying campaign by independent voters from 13 states who phone banked to get the word out to Granite State independents.

The bill was nearly identical to one introduced in 2005 (HB 154) which CIV-NH also defeated by mobilizing hundreds of independents to call and write legislators about its negative impact. 

This year’s bill was introduced by Rep. Pamela Manney [R] at the behest of her constituent Tricia Wynne, an election supervisor from Goffstown.  The Election Law Committee of the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted Friday that HB 196 was “inexpedient to legislate,â€Â� effectively killing the bill.

Ward and other CIV-NH activists testified at a hearing on the bill held February 16th, 2007 and stated, “I am not ‘undeclared’ as is stipulated in NH but rather perceive myself as an independent.  I feel no need to belong to a party.  It is my opinion that the political process be inclusive regardless of any party  affiliation. That all citizens participate in every aspect of the political process without barriers, or restrictions. That access is open and unconditional. It is my testimony today that NH-CIV and independents in New Hampshire opposed HB 154 and we oppose HB 196. I have a petition signed by 300 people from 50 towns across New Hampshire in opposition to HB 154; we are in the process of reaching all of them about HB 196.â€Â�

CIV-NH hosts a monthly meeting of independents.  The next is scheduled to take place Saturday, March 24 at the Concord Public Library at 2:00 pm.

National support for the New Hampshire lobbying effort spearheaded by Betty Ward was mobilized by CUIP – a national organizing center for independents – and its political director Jacqueline Salit.

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NH Independents Pressing Presidential Candidates to
Take a Stand on Proposed Plan to Limit Their Voting Rights

Dem/Repub Legislators Schedule Hearing on HB 196
For Friday, February 16, 2007

For Immediate Release: February 14, 2007

Contact: Jerome Holden 603-569-5335
Sarah Lyons 212-962-1824 / 917-658-9885

Concord, NH â€â€�Independent voters in New Hampshire are reaching out to the campaigns of all declared presidential candidates with an urgent campaign alert asking them to take a stand on HB 196, the pending legislation that would limit the voting rights of independents in state and presidential primaries.  A hearing scheduled for today has been reset for February 16, 2007 before the House of Representatives, Committee on Election Law.

Last weekend independent activist Betty Ward of Concord, NH put the role of independents in the presidential election front and center during Hillary Clinton’s Concord visit Saturday, as Democratic and Republican legislators in the state plan to deliver a nasty Valentine’s Day message to independents.  The legislators have reintroduced a bill to restrict independents’ participation in presidential primaries, a bill which independents defeated in 2005. 

Ward, an activist with the New Hampshire Committee for an Independent Voice (NH-CIV), drew applause from audience members when she began her question to Clinton by stating that 42% of NH voters were independents.  Ward continued, “On one hand, we are congratulated when we help a candidate win, but on the other hand, Democrats and Republicans have introduced legislation that limits our voice in elections.â€Â� 

Clinton responded by saying everyone should be included in the process, and cited some minor parties in New York that work together in the fusion process.

“Senator Clinton made a general statement about the need for independents to be included,â€Â� said Ward.  “But our concerns at this moment are very specific.  Our state legislature has reintroduced a bill to limit independents’ participation in the presidential primary elections, and we are fighting against it.  Senator Clinton didn’t speak as clearly as she needs to.  We’re going to be asking all the presidential candidates exactly where they stand on this issue.â€Â�

Ward added, “Senator Clinton seems to think that being independent means being in a party.  That shows she doesn't know who independents are.  Independents don't like parties and most of us aren't in one.  But we still want the full rights of participation that are guaranteed by the Constitution."

Independents have voted in presidential primaries in New Hampshire since 1910. 

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State legislators can be found at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/ie/whosmyleg/.

Dear Representative ___________,

I strongly urge you to vote against HB 196, the House bill that restricts independents’ right to participate in state and presidential primaries by prohibiting us from re-registering as independent immediately after we vote, a right we have had since 1910.

HB 196 is essentially a re-introduction of HB 154, which the State Senate wisely defeated in 2005 after hearing from New Hampshire’s independents, who strongly protested its passage.  43% of our state’s voters are independent.  According to the Secretary of State, most new voters are registering independent.  We are the fastest growing constituency in the state, and in the country. 

Neither major party can win elections in New Hampshire without independent support.  This is an important issue to me and to my neighbors and colleagues.  Please oppose the bill.

Sincerely,

[your name and town]

42% of New Hampshire voters are registered independent – that's a 15% increase in just 8 years – while Democratic and Republican registration has been steadily declining. Yet, the Democrats and Republicans were not only refusing to accommodate this trend, they were actively obstructing it. In February of 2005, the New Hampshire House of Representatives passed a measure slapping independents who have voted in presidential primaries since 1910 with a 90 day waiting period and a special trip to the town clerk in order to reclaim their status as independents.  In stepped Independent activists with New Hampshire's Committee for an Independent Voice ("CIV-NH") who mobilized independents around the state and forced their State Senate to back off a bill.

Here's their story:

"The bill would have made independent voters second class citizens and less than fully franchised,â€Â� said CIV-NH co-chair Betty Ward, who helped mobilize independents statewide in opposition to the bill.  "Politicians like to take credit for things, but it was a bunch of ordinary 'undeclared' voters who came together and stopped the passage of the bill.â€Â�

The bill, HB 154, swept through the House in the winter of 2005 with bi-partisan support but without input from independent voters, who comprise 42% of the state's electorate. 

Introduced by Rep. Bruce Hunter at the behest of his constituent Tricia Wynne, an election supervisor from Goffstown, the bill's original intention was to standardize election day administration for all voters. Instead, Rep. William O'Brien added an amendment which greatly altered the bill's intent, slapping independents with a 90-day waiting period and requiring an in-person visit to the town clerk in order for them to regain their status as independent voters. Independents have voted in NH primaries since the first one in 1910.

Independents in NH began mobilizing against HB 154 immediately after its passage by the House with a phone banking and letter writing operation.  Elected officials were lobbied, a website was erected and reinforcements from associations of independent voters across the country began to pour in. 

By the time of the Senate hearing that Spring – the first opportunity for independents to testify about the negative impact of the bill – over 300 undeclared voters from 50 different townships had signed onto a statement for the hearing.  Scores of letters had been sent and phone calls made to elected officials on both sides of the aisle. 

The lobbying paid off.  Senator Sylvia Larsen made a motion that the Internal Affairs Committee recommend to the full Senate that the bill was "inexpedient to legislate."  The full Senate voted unanimously to kill the bill by voice vote on April 21st. 

"New Hampshire's independents banded together to speak their minds about this bill and the Senate was forced to listen,â€Â� said Jacqueline Salit, political director of the Committee for a Unified Independent Party (CUIP), which is supporting campaigns in all 50 states to fight for political recognition of independent voters. 

"Independents – who make up 35% of voters nationwide – are Americans who need and want a voice,â€Â� added Salit.  "Bi-partisan control over the electoral process needs to be challenged when it hurts independents and that's just what happened in New Hampshire.  Democrats and Republicans will now have to think twice before they tread on independents.  If and when they do, independents will be there to respond.  CIV-NH will see to that."

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