On January 3, Indiana State Senator Karen Tallian (D-Ogden Dunes) introduced SB 212, to provide that Indiana join that National Popular Vote Compact.
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On January 3, Maine Representative Don Marean changed his registration from Republican to independent. He had been re-elected last year as a Republican. Maine’s House now has seven independents. See this story.
According to this Washington Post article, the text of HR 1 (the Democratic bill for federal election law changes) will include a provision requiring presidential candidates to reveal their income tax returns for 10 previous years. It is very difficult to imagine how this bill will be worded. The federal government has no connection with ballot access, so one wonders how the proposed law could be enforced. Even setting aside that problem, congress has no more authority to add qualifications to run for federal office than the states do. Thanks to Political Wire for the link.
Josh Putnam, an expert on national presidential conventions of the two major parties, here points out that the Republican rules for the 2020 national convention permit a presidential candidate to be placed in nomination if that candidate has support from a plurality of the delegates in any five states. That rule was passed in time for the 2016 national convention, and it is too late to change it for 2020.
By contrast, in 2012, a candidate needed majority support from delegations from eight states.
This op-ed by Greg Orman, independent candidate for Governor of Kansas last year, is thoughtful and worth a read.