Have you joined the ranks of the growing plurality of Texans who vote for the person not the party? No one knows for sure, but independent, non-aligned Texas voters are likely larger in number than those who align with the Democratic, Republican or Libertarian parties in Texas. But we’re just learning how to use our power against the special interest dilemma plaguing Texas and the nation — of course, Texas does this (special interest politics) bigger than most!
Mind you, Texas does not have partisan registration, which means that when you register to vote, you do not check a box that you want to affiliate with a party. The only way you are identified with a party in Texas is very loosely – it depends on if you vote in either the Democratic or Republican Party primary or join a party’s convention (in the case of Libertarians). If you vote in a party primary, your card is stamped with the party name, but the next time a party primary occurs, you can vote in either party primary again. This is called the “open primary”. The open primary is one of the better features of Texas elections because it allows independents to “shop the ballot” every two years. Of course, in the November general election, you can vote for any candidate of any party or for an independent (if there’s one on the ballot).
If you want to know what’s going on in Texas politics, from the independent perspective, simply join Independent Texans. This will also give you the right vote on our endorsements — via email!
Join us for $10 for the year – but read the rest of this article!
More on Independent Politics in Texas
As independents, we know that the candidates (in any of the political parties) will not do Texas much better than the current regime, unless Texans continue to organize themselves outside of both parties as a powerful swing vote to determine upcoming elections. Conservative independents just did that in Massachusetts, but remember that independent voters are split three-ways. A third of us are conservatives, a third are moderates and a third are liberal/progressive.
Texas independents have a long history we won’t go into here, but suffice to say that we became much more recognized when Ross Perot won the largest independent vote for President in US history in 1992.
Texas independents (like American independents) are a mixed bag — we don’t have one ideology and many of us have no ideology or have mixed views on hot button issues like abortion, gay marriage, guns, etc. What unites us is the call for broad political reforms that would empower voters to engage local, county and state government in a dialogue about real solutions to our many problems in a broad range of policies (from property rights reform to housing to environment to energy, etc.). In our view, the solutions to our problems are both complex and have no political hue. Furthermore, the two-party “dictatorship” and the partisan fighting that goes on between politicians and the parties, creates an illusion that there is real political dialogue going on to get at problems. At this point in American history, in the view of many independents, the parties are a huge road block to getting creative solutions to the table. Why? It’s a systemic problem related to a monopolistic and adversarial political system that will never change until American voters decide to change it.
Therefore, it’s not even really politicians fault — even, we hesitate to admit — Rick Perry’s! Will any of the candidates understand how to relate to us independents? If BootPerry.org is seen by thousands of Texans, that gives independents a fighting chance in this election. So get your BootPerry.org bumper sticker(s) and send our site out to all your friends — even your enemies!
Note: What we mean by Texas Political Reform: These political reforms include extending the right for Texans to petition government, allowing legislators to more easily override the Governor’s vetoes, to redistricting reform so legislators are stopped from picking their own voters through gerrymandering, etc. (More on political reform is at Independent Texans’ web site here.)
If you are an independent voter, be sure to join Independent Texans. This year it’s just $10 to join. Go here to sign up. Membership gives you the right to vote on our endorsements and because Texas has open primaries and non-partisan voter registration, membership in our organization in no way affects which party primary, if any, you vote in, or whether you can join a political party.
We know this can be very confusing. Got questions? Contact us through the Independent Texans web site here.