Episode Description
Independent Times is the source for independent voters' no-spin news and analysis. Welcome to the first podcast built for America’s largest voting bloc: 43% of voters now identify as independent, outpacing both Democrats and Republicans.
Host Lisa Singer, joined by co-hosts Leyla Gullen and Bryan Gallo, investigates the history and the enormous barriers facing independent political candidates.
We unpack:
- You are America's largest voting bloc, yet true independent politicians are nearly extinct.
- The Legacy of Ross Perot and other disruptors like Ralph Nader, and whether independents risk being "spoilers."
- The Rare Breed: Why only 25 out of 7,386 state legislative seats are held by independents and zero in the U.S. House.
- The Forward Movement: Andrew Yang's crusade to fix the system using ranked-choice voting and open primaries to give voters real choices.
- The Two-Party Grip: How confusing ballot rules, lack of funding, and state-by-state election laws keep 3rd parties out.
Independent Hero of the Week: Andrew Yang, the founder of the Forward Party, on how “changing the incentives” with open primaries and ranked-choice voting forces politicians to represent the nation’s majority, not the extremes of each party.
Timestamps:
00:00 Title Sequence
00:44 Seinfeld Clip – Kramer asks, “What’s the deal with politics?”
00:58 Intro by Lisa, Bryan, and Leyla – the rarity of independent politicians
02:55 Ross Perot's Presidential Bid (1992 Clip)
05:44 Bernie Sanders Presidential Bid (montage)
07:03 Bernie Sanders on Joe Rogan to discuss the minimum wage (clip)
08:25 Angus King explains that most Maine voters are unenrolled (clip)
09:40 The Statehouse Scarcity
10:05 Andrew Yang makes the case for universal basic income (clip)
11:15 Andrew Yang, The Forward Party, and Local Wins
11:42 Andrew Yang makes the case for the Forward Party (clip)
14:20 The Barrier: Sore Loser Laws & Party Flipping
14:24 NYC 2025 Mayoral Race, Cuomo and Adams switching to independent (clip)
15:22 Is the Two-Party System in the Constitution?
18:00 Steve Kornacki on how independents vote (clip)
19:15 RFK Jr. flips to independent in the 2024 election (clip)
20:47 Unaffiliated independent voters explain why (clip)
24:19 The best reform ideas for independents (clip)
26:26 Andrew Yang is our independent hero of the week
26:59 Independent Hero: Andrew Yang's TED Talk
28:27 Outro
Independent Times is the source for independent voters' no-spin news and analysis. Welcome to the first podcast built for America’s largest voting bloc: 43% of voters now identify as independent, outpacing both Democrats and Republicans.
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