Source: Ballot Access News

In Illinois, it is common for many small cities to have partisan elections, which are contested only by local political parties. Lyons, Illinois, in Cook County, has partisan elections for its own officers in odd year. At the April 2011 election, the contest was between the United Citizens Party and the Most Valuable Party. The press commonly refers to these two parties by their acronyms, UCP and MVP. Read more »

Source: Libertarian Party (LP.org)

Most Americans used to call themselves Republican or Democrat. These days, more call themselves independent. What does that mean for American politics? A lot.

“Independents are everywhere, and they’re becoming the largest single voting bloc in the country,” Reason magazine Editor Matt Welch says. ” (T)hey can determine every national election and every … election for state office. So independent voters—people who refuse to say, ‘I’m a Republican or I’m a Democrat’—that’s where all the action is.” Read more »