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People support our core values of
fairness and a level playing field. This year, we couldn’t convert
public support into policy change on a wide scale. We’ve yet to build
deep trust with average voters - there is still lots of education
needed to build understanding of why open primaries are relevant.
We’ve underestimated the partisan special interests that want to
maintain the status quo.
Post Election Thought Number One: Thank you. We came up short. But thousands
of you gathered signatures, wrote checks, knocked on doors, made phone
calls and talked with friends and family. It was inspirational. The
open primaries community grew and showed up - BIG TIME.
Post Election Thought Number Two: There are no shortcuts when it comes to
making this happen. We’ve got to build a movement, support local
leaders, and inspire tens of millions of our fellow Americans. We need
to get better at listening and building trust. Voters need to believe
reform is not a trojan horse. We think we have all the answers. But
we don’t. We have ideas and vision and we need to bring that to the
people and listen to what they say in response.
Post Election Thought Number Three: Open Primaries is all about full voting
rights for independents. We need to build an army of millions of
independents to shout that to the rafters. Just like Lisa did in DC,
we have to make this personal all across the country.
Yesterday was tough. But the number
of independents continues to soar. Neither party has the vision or the
trust of the American people to remake our democracy. We have our work
cut out for us, but we have a lot to work with. Our plan is to analyze
honestly, create conversation and learning, and get busy
organizing.
Thank you for all of your hard work
and support this year. Onward!
John Opdycke, President
Open Primaries
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