Did you know that you may have to vote again in your primary if no candidate gets more than half the votes? If not, you may want to find out if this applies to you.

For example, there’s been such a close race for Jeff Sessions’ vacant Senate seat in Alabama that the Republican primary in August did not determine a winner. A primary runoff between the top two Republican candidates, Roy Moore and Luther Strange, is scheduled for September 26.

In over 115 races that Vote Smart has already tracked in 2017, we have encountered other unconventional election practices that voters may not be aware of. Earlier this month, Mississippi held a nonpartisan primary election for its State House Dist. 102 seat that will be determined by a runoff election in October.

Most Americans participate in a first-past-the-post system where winners in primaries and general elections are decided by a “plurality”—the candidate with the most votes wins. Several cities and states across the nation, however, have adopted alternative election methods. Read on for a brief explanation of the unique election practices that are currently used at the state and federal levels.

Many voters don’t like to read–I’ve probably lost those voters already. Politicians use titles and labels to steer the conversation in whatever direction they choose–think Trumpcare vs. Better Care Reconciliation Act. This was no different with the President’s “Travel Ban.” Because many are unlikely to read the executive order, the labels and titles attached to it have a lot of influence into its perceived impact. Is it a Muslim Ban? A Travel Ban? Or extreme vetting?

After several roadblocks, the Supreme Court has, by a unanimous decision, allowed part of the “Travel Ban” (formally titled Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States) to go into effect. Since its inception, this executive order has received criticism for its restrictions that would limit entry from certain predominantly Muslim nations to the US.

 “Good afternoon. Today, the United States of America is changing its relationship with the people of Cuba.” These were the opening lines of Barack Obama’s announcement of his plans to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba back in December of 2014. Those words could have also opened President Trump’s speech on Friday where he announced plans to roll back some of the changes set forth by the Obama administration.  
 

“We will not lift sanctions on the Cuban regime,” President Trump proclaimed, ”until all political prisoners are freed, freedoms of assembly and expression are respected, all political parties are legalized, and free and internationally supervised elections are scheduled. Elections.”

These plans come just weeks after the bipartisan coalition consisting of US Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) introduced legislation that would lift the Cuban trade embargo.

The Political Courage Test, which has been endorsed by major media in every election since 1992, asks candidates to demonstrate their political courage by providing voters with that essential information, in spite of the fact that opponents might use their answers in political attacks. 

 Each year, as billions of dollars are funneled into American elections, more and more questions continue to rise regarding not only the legality of these financial contributions, but also the true intentions behind them.

How can the benefits of GMOs be utilized while respecting the consumer’s right to transparency?

2016 has seen several state legislators propose changes in the regulation of voting rights for individuals with felonies, and the timeframe for felons to receive the right to vote.

The legislative year of 2016 has seen a multitude of bills passed that authorizes the use of marijuana in many states.

 ..foreign policy has become one of the main focuses of the election cycle. Each presidential candidate has their own take on foreign policy and America's role in the Middle East right now.

 After repeated requests, less than 10% of Virginia's legislative candidates were willing to tell citizens where they stand on 10 key issues. This is fewer responses than from those running for federal offices, which is a trend in lock step with the increasing nastiness of political tactics.

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Preferring to protect themselves from opposition research, only 20% of the 1282 candidates for Congress were willing to provide voters or media with direct answers to the issue questions on Vote Smart’s National Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving New Hampshire voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Fifty-one of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Maine voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-three congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Texas voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Forty-six of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving New York voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Eleven of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test. 

 Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Minnesota voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Thirty congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.
 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Iowa voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Eleven congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving South Carolina voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Eight of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Nebraska voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Six congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.  

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving North Carolina voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-two of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Tennessee voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Kansas voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-one congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

 Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Delaware voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nine of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

 Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Mississippi voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Three of the congressional candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test. 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Alabama voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Seven congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Vermont voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Fifteen of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving New Jersey voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nine of the congressional candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Illinois voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Thirteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Maryland voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-two congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Oklahoma voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nine of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving West Virginia voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Ten of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Pennsylvania voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Seventeen of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Rhode Island voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nine of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Virginia voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Seven of the congressional candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Louisiana voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Four of the congressional candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving South Dakota voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nine of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving North Dakota voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Five of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Indiana voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Seventeen of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test. 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Missouri voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twelve of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Oregon voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-one of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Washington voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-three of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.
 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving California voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-eight congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Nevada voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Fourteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Hawaii voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Sixteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.
 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Alaska voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Thirteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Montana voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Forty-six of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving New Mexico voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Four of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test. 
 

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Utah voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty-four of the congressional and state legislative candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Idaho voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nineteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Arizona voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Nineteen congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Wyoming voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Fifteen of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

Today, Vote Smart released the results of the National Political Courage Test to VoteEasy at VoteSmart.org, giving Ohio voters an invaluable resource for identifying their best political match November 4th. Twenty of the congressional, state legislative and gubernatorial candidates passed the 2014 Political Courage Test.

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Politicians have discovered it is not only cheaper but easier to manipulate voters emotionally rather than informing them intellectually. Since politics has become a dollars race, whoever raises the most money will win. Platforms, competence, and ideas have taken a back seat to attack ads and courage-less politicians. 

Vote Smart announced today that the 2014 Voter’s Self-Defense Manual is available free to all voters by simply calling 888-VoteSmart or emailing membership@votesmart.org.

Today, Vote Smart announces the unveiling of its powerful new tools that provide every citizen interactive, instant access to the facts on any politician, on any issue, at any time.

Three prominent political research experts, Brooks Jackson, Ted McConnell, and Sheila Krumholz, have joined the board of Vote Smart (VoteSmart.org), the leading non-partisan national research organization focused on politicians and elections.

Vote Smart (VoteSmart.org), the leading non-partisan national research organization focused on politicians and elections, announced a series of massive additions to its factual database on over 150,000 current and former elected officials and candidates. 

 Vote Smart’s Great Divide Research Center reported today that its member contributions have increased in 2014 by 81%, and that it has gotten Charity Navigator’s highest four star rating. 

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It's Election Day! Well, for many of you it is.

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As of this morning, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont.,has joined an increasingly long list of senators that will not seek reelection in 2014.

Six days after Jesse Jackson Jr. pleaded guilty to the misuse of campaign funds, voters in his long-held district go the polls to begin the process of finding a replacement.

Mike Johanns, the republican senior senator from Nebraska, won't seek reelection in 2014.

Read our November Common Ground E-Newsletter here...

During the 2012 election cycle, 1.5 million NEW users discovered Vote Smart adding to the millions already "voting smart." 

Find out if your state allows for same-day registration.

Vote Smart announces today their added technological capacity which is now sufficient to handle the millions of undecided voters expected to use its award-winning candidate match tool, VoteEasy. 

A  20-year study of over 15,000 congressional candidates and their willingness to answer questions on the major issues

VoteEasy is now available for voters in all 50 states.

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Find out if your state-level candidates have shown courage in their 2012 campaigns. 

For those of you living under rocks, Mitt Romney announced his running mate last Saturday – Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan. You've probably heard a fair amount about Ryan, probably about his time spent as chair of the House Budget committee, and the budget proposal he crafted. But what about the information voters really want to know, like the fact that he's a fan of Monty Python*? At votesmart.org you can find out all you need to know (and more) about both vice-presidential contenders.

The opening ceremony for the 2012 summer Olympics officially begins on Friday July 27th, but here at Project Vote Smart we’re interested in a different race – the Presidential Election.  And while the 10,500 athletes are proudly representing their respective countries, Project Vote Smart staff and interns are hard at work researching the over 40,000 candidates and officials fighting to represent us.

At votesmart.org you can find out how your representatives feel about defense and defense spending in a few different ways: 

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As media outlets and bloggers scrambled to find the back story on Democratic Presidential Primary Candidate Keith Judd, who won a surprising 41% of the vote in a West Virginia primary, against his more well-known and better-funded opponent, President Barack Obama, it began to emerge that only one (very) reputable source had bothered to reach out to this possible nominee – us. 

Project Vote Smart is teaming up with MTV to launch a desktop and mobile game where points will be earned through information provided by PVS and other organizations, and candidates will be rewarded if they choose to participate in our "Political Courage Test"

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What if, following Super Tuesday, all four GOP candidates are still in the game and no clear frontrunner has emerged? 

Following the resignation of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, Arizona was faced with a unique situation in holding elections to replace the former Congresswoman.

The South Carolina Republican Presidential Preference Primary is scheduled for Saturday, January, 21st and while in most of our minds there are only four candidates still vying for the GOP nomination, one look at the ballot will tell a slightly different story. 

We released the 2012 Political Courage Test results today for Oregon's special election showing neither major party congressional candidate running for the state's 1st Congressional District seat was willing to answer even the most basic issue-related questions addressed inside the Test.

As expected, the Iowa Caucus, the first nominating contest of the 2012 election season, proved to shake things up inside the GOP race.

Special elections typically are a result of unusual circumstances, scandal, or tragedy, and the race for Oregon's 1st Congressional district is no exception. 

There is one issue that only pops up every decade with noticeable consequences, and that issue is redistricting.

With the presidential election exactly one year away, Project Vote Smart has launched VoteEasy (winner of the best there is at the 2011 Webvisionary Awards), the interactive tool for voters to instantly see which presidential candidate they are most compatible with. To use VoteEasy now visit www.votesmart.org.

“It shouldn’t take courage for a politician to complete a survey regarding positions on issues. Yet seemingly it does.” – South Bend Tribune

The 2011 Webvisonary Awards (Web Academy Awards) selects VoteEasy as the best there is.  

Project Vote Smart is putting a BIG GUARD DOG onto the political playing field. Today VoteEasy will go national with the attached release.  It has not been easy to create and we need your help to build on it. Even if you be a contributing member or volunteer, please use it to defend yourself from the political nonesense that frustrates and often disgusts us all.