The Democratic National Convention in Chicago is buzzing with energy and several Hoosiers are there on the ground, ushering in Vice President Kamala Harris' presumed nomination.

Derek Camp, chairman of the Allen County Democratic Party and a delegate to the convention, said Hoosier voters are concerned about ensuring women's reproductive rights.

"One of the tings I hear the most back home is Indiana is reproductive rights -- a woman's right to choose as well as birth control -- those are very important and high on the minds of a lot of voters back home in Indiana," Camp explained. "It's certainly something that Donald Trump has made clear that he is going to remove."

Camp sees voter enthusiasm growing in Indiana, especially among young people who are stepping forward to get involved knocking on doors and becoming party precinct chairs. Camp pointed out he has not seen this kind of energy in Indiana since 2008 when President Barack Obama was elected to his first term. It was also the first time since 1964 Indiana chose a Democrat for president.

While the historic nomination of Kamala Harris at the top of the Democratic ticket sizzles, Camp noted Democrats are also thankful for the years of service from President Joe Biden.

"What he also has done and shown yet again is he has got decades of service to his country and to his community," Camp stressed. "And by understanding that the best thing for this country is him stepping aside and passing the baton to the very capable Vice President Harris who will make history herself. "

The Indiana delegation is being led by former U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly, who recently stepped down as U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. By the close of the four-day convention, Indiana's 88 delegates will have played a key role in nominating Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as the Democratic candidates for the 2024 presidential election.


get more stories like this via email

The Democratic National Convention in Chicago kicked off last night with huge crowds and the biggest delegation, some 500 strong, hails from California.

The group is especially enthusiastic about nominee Kamala Harris, since she served the people of the Golden State for decades as district attorney in San Francisco, state Attorney General and then U.S. Senator before becoming vice president.

Rusty Hicks, chair of the California delegation, talked about the historic nature of the convention.

"It's an opportunity for Democrats across the country to come together to get ready to help elect the first Black-South Asian woman President of the United States," Hicks pointed out. "Especially being from California, it's a special night in so many ways."

Hicks noted California has been a leader on many issues that are being highlighted at the convention, including reproductive freedom, LGBTQ+ rights, climate change, the fight against poverty and the role new immigrants play in keeping the economy strong.

Even though California is traditionally a blue state, all but certain to send its electoral votes to Harris in November, Hicks stressed the real battle is to take back control of Congress.

"In order to retake the House of Representatives, we've got to win seats in California and those seats will be won by a handful of votes," Hicks predicted. "The work that we've been doing on the ground has been focused on winning close, tough elections."

Early voting in California is about six weeks away. The first ballots will be mailed on Oct. 7.


get more stories like this via email

The committee behind an initiative to create open primaries in Arizona has come out on top of several legal challenges.

Just last week, a Maricopa County Superior judge ruled the legislative council responsible for writing descriptions of ballot initiatives wrote a misleading summary of Prop 140, the "Make Elections Fair Act." The council has been instructed to rewrite it.

The Arizona Free Enterprise Club also filed suit against the initiative, claiming it violated the state's "single subject" rule but it was rejected by another judge.

Frank Knapp, director of the advocacy group Business for Democracy, said his group supports the initiative as part of what he calls a "vibrant entrepreneurial economy" in Arizona.

"It is the free enterprise applied to our elections system and what works for the economy will also work for the elections system," Knapp argued. "I think the public will have a better product, they will have a more efficient, more effective government that is more interested in problem-solving."

The Arizona Free Enterprise Club has appealed the judge's decision to the state Supreme Court. Backers of closed primaries said they ensure only members of a given party will influence the party's nominees. But Knapp countered the current system does not make sense for Arizona, where Independent and unaffiliated voters are the largest registered voter bloc in the state.

Knapp stressed the initiative would make political races more competitive and give all voters the freedom to choose between the people vying for office. He added the state's closed primary system means election outcomes are dictated by around 20% of voters in the Republican primary and 15% of voters in the Democratic primary.

"Most seats in the House and Senate in Arizona are 'safe seats,' meaning that whoever wins the primary is more than likely going to win the general election," Knapp pointed out. "That's not very good for democracy."

Data from the Scholars Strategy Network found because of the lack of voter participation in primaries, those who do turn out tend to be more ideologically extreme, which means when a general election rolls around, moderate voters must choose between more polarizing candidates.


get more stories like this via email

Vice President Kamala Harris has reignited enthusiasm among voters this election season, but polls show not everyone is ready for a woman president.

More than 50% of respondents to a recent YouGov poll believe a woman can serve as commander in chief - that's down from more than 60% in 2015.

Still, University of New Hampshire Professor Emerita of History Ellen Fitzpatrick and author of "The Highest Glass Ceiling: Women's Quest for the American Presidency," said Harris is boosted by voters' concerns about the state of democracy and a younger generation looking for change.

"And in that context," said Fitzpatrick, "the gender question seems to be not very salient to me."

Fitzpatrick said women often have to work harder than men to prove they're qualified for a job. More than 30% of Democrats surveyed said Harris needed a man as her running mate.

Fitzpatrick noted that Harris' campaign would not be possible without the women trailblazers who came before her, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, and Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm of New York - the first African American woman to seek a presidential nomination in 1972.

Fitzpatrick said Chisholm foresaw early on the coalition of working-class people, women, and minorities who've coalesced behind Harris today.

"It was her central insight," said Fitzpatrick, "that younger voters and all of these other groups might provide the basis for the election of the nation's first woman president."

Still, Fitzpatrick noted there will always be some voters opposed to a woman leading the White House, and who believe women are incapable of making decisions related to war and peace.

A Pew Research Center poll finds only one-in-four U.S. adults believe it's extremely or very likely that the U.S. will elect a woman president in their lifetime.

Support for this reporting was provided by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.





get more stories like this via email