Tim Cahill.

BOSTON, MASS. Massachusetts State Treasurer and Independent candidate for Governor Tim Cahill wrote a letter to President Barack Obama at the urging of a group of Massachusetts independent voters, asking that one or more independents be appointed to the Federal Elections Commission to fill two currently vacant seats.  Cahill met with Massachusetts Coalition of Independent Voters in late July seeking their endorsement and sent the letter to President Obama in early August.  The group is affiliated with IndependentVoting.org – a national association of independents with organization in 40 states.

“We had a substantive dialogue with Tim Cahill about our concerns as independent voters, the challenges we face, our desire to protect open primaries and our efforts to make politics more inclusive and less partisan,” said Evelyn Dougherty of Massachusetts Coalition of Independent Voters.  “And there’s no doubt that leaving the Democratic Party and running as an independent has aligned him with the political reform issues we believe in.”

In his letter to the White House Cahill writes:

Even thought the current structure of the FEC is bipartisan in the sense that representation between the two major parties is equal, there is no guarantee that the Commission is truly bipartisan in spirit.  It is important to ensure that the FEC will place the same value on independent initiatives by having one or more truly independent Commissions.  As the State Treasurer of Massachusetts and Independent candidate for Governor, I feel it is crucial to have all voices at the table to prevent partisan bias.  I have always advocated for considering the best ideas regardless of party affiliation to allow our government to serve its citizens most effectively.  One or more independent voices will undoubtedly benefit the Commission and its responsibility to administer and enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act.

Jackie Salit, president of IndependentVoting.org, and her general counsel Harry Kresky began lobbying the White House around the FEC appointments issue in August of 2009.  “Independents were a key part of Obama’s winning coalition in 2008 and we’d like to see him give greater recognition and representation to independents,” said Salit.  “That will go a long way to restraining the partisans and it will also help the President regain his popularity with independent voters.  He’s got to show us that he’s bigger than the partisan game.”