Shawn Griffiths
Every major voting rights movement in U.S. history – whether successful or not – has intertwined with landmark litigation. This was the case for women’s suffrage. It was the case for civil rights.
And it is the case in the ongoing effort to protect the right of all voters to have equal participation in taxpayer-funded elections – something millions of independent voters are denied across the U.S.
On October 17, the better election reform groups, Open Primaries and Independent Voter Project (IVP), are co-hosting a virtual discussion titled “Taking the Fight for Open Primaries to Court,” bringing together attorneys that are paving the way for the reform movement.
This includes former Maryland Lt. Governor Boyd Rutherford, IVP attorney Chad Peace, Pennsylvania attorney Matt Fontana, and Open Primaries Senior Vice President Jeremy Gruber in a discussion moderated by Open Primaries President John Opdycke.
The event will also feature Michael J. Polelle, a retired attorney that single-handedly took his lawsuit against the Florida closed primary system that shuts out 3.4 million independent voters to the steps of the Supreme Court.
RSVP HERE
Each of these individuals have been involved in lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of closed primaries in states like New Jersey, where IVP filed suit back in 2014. IVP also challenged California’s use of semi-closed presidential primary elections in 2019.
IVP has already petitioned the Supreme Court to hear both of these cases.
Legal efforts expanded in 2025 to Maryland, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming, and Florida. IVP and Open Primaries filed a joint amicus brief with the Forward Party in support of the Florida case.
During the virtual discussion, participants will discuss the role these cases have played, are playing, and will continue to play as the legal fight for equal independent voting rights takes new steps to being heard by the nation’s highest court.