How many U.S. Senators does it take to influence policy in a polarized country? Perhaps just one. Evan McMullin could be that one, while also demonstrating a new way to compete against previously untouchable incumbents. If Evan wins, the independent political movement will have a wedge in the U.S. Senate in January and will have already achieved what most think is impossible.
As an operator and movement builder, you look for high-leverage opportunities. Evan’s race is the biggest opportunity one can imagine. If you have any friends in Utah, let them know how important this race is and feel free to send Evan a few bucks
here. Let’s do all we can to take advantage of this.
The second biggest opportunity is the ballot
initiative in Nevada that could switch the state to nonpartisan open primaries and ranked choice voting. We saw last month in Alaska the impact of this process change when Sarah Palin lost her primary and Lisa Murkowski won hers despite voting to impeach Donald Trump. Now, Nevadans have the chance to make the same change, which could lead to more states adopting the same.
Replacing party primaries with non-partisan open primaries may be the single best way to depolarize our politics and make our leadership more reasonable, accountable and truly representative. Reformers are investing $17 million in the Nevada ballot initiative. If it passes, non-partisan primaries will continue to sweep the country. If it fails, people will think that we will truly be stuck in our party politics forever. Polling has it at 50-50 right now.
I will be going to Nevada to try to help push it over the top. If you have friends in Nevada, let them know to vote Yes on 3. And you can
volunteer to call or text Nevadans every day in the run-up to Election Day.
I hope that these are half as exciting to you as they are to me. Most of our country is once again being told the sole fight is between Democrats and Republicans. We know that there’s a different struggle as well – a fight to improve our politics so that people and principles matter more than the letter next to one’s name, and to restore the connection between people and families and the leaders who are meant to represent them.
As I’m writing this, the news is coming in that Paul Pelosi was attacked in his home. We have to lower the country’s temperature as quickly as we can.
I’m pumped up for the possibilities, but they won’t happen without people working on them. Let’s work hard through Election Day. Pick something and do it.
