In 16 states, independent voters cannot vote in the primaries that decide who holds office. Veterans among them. We are taking the states to court, one at a time, starting with New York.
Independent Veterans of America backs independent veterans running for office. But a candidate cannot win a primary they are barred from, and neither can the voters who would choose them. Let Vets Vote is the other half of the work: leveling the field so independents can compete.
With the Independent Voter Project, we are challenging the closed primary in federal court, state by state. The first case, Rieckhoff v. Berger, was filed in New York on October 1, 2026.
New York is where it starts, not where it ends. Oregon, Kansas and Louisiana are next, with more states to follow in the coming weeks.
Does the right to vote at a decisive, publicly funded stage of an election come from citizenship, or from joining a party? Every state answers it differently. Pick one.
The lawsuit, argued on national television by the people bringing it.
1:28MS NOW with Stephanie RuhleLet Vets Vote: IVA, Rieckhoff Takes New York's closed primaries to courtOct 6, 2026 · Paul Rieckhoff
5:45NewsNation CuomoThe Tip of the Spear: Two Ways Independent Veterans Are Leading the Fight for 45% of AmericaOct 6, 2026 · Paul Rieckhoff and Seth Bodnar
4:40NewsNation with Connell McShane"Independents Aren't Treated as Equal Citizens" Veterans Lead the Fight to Open New York's PrimariesOct 2, 2026 · Paul Rieckhoff and Chad PeaceAdd your name to the demand that every state open the primaries that decide its elections to every voter — including the veterans who served for them. Tell us where you vote so we know where to fight next.
Litigation is slow and expensive, and we intend to bring it in more than one state. Your contribution funds the legal challenges and the organizing behind them.
Contributions to Independent Veterans of America Action are not tax deductible.
Primary systems follow the Open Primaries classification of each state’s congressional and state primaries. Veterans are the U.S. Census Bureau’s ACS 2024 1-Year estimate (Table S2101, civilian population 18+). Independents are the state’s registered unaffiliated voters where it registers by party, and the Independent Voter Project’s L2-modeled estimate where it does not; the two are labeled wherever they appear. The independent-veteran figure applies IVA’s 49% identity estimate to each state’s veterans and is a model of political identity, not a registration count. Full per-state sourcing in IVA’s State Fact Sheets. Backbone built 2026-08-05.