restoring open dialogue

The Foundation for Independent Voter Education

FIVE distributes news and education resources to independent-minded voters to encourage more participation in the election process.

About FIVE

The Foundation for Independent Voter Education (FIVE) is a non-profit, non-partisan, 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to restoring the importance of open dialogue in our democracy.

Who We Are

The Foundation for Independent Voter Education (FIVE) is a non-profit, non-partisan, 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to restoring the importance of open dialogue in our democracy.

FIVE strives to:

  • strengthen independent-minded citizen engagement in politics,
  • educate key stakeholders within our political system to the importance of constructive compromise, and
  • to do so in a way that is unfiltered by the partisanship that often drives larger public dialogue.

What We Do

FIVE is committed to the belief that democracy functions best when the most people participate. Unfortunately, today’s political climate discourages such a participatory democracy and alienates independent-minded voters, who feel out of touch with the extreme partisanship of today’s politics. The news currently being presented by traditional media outlets only furthers to alienate independent-minded voters by presenting only right-wing and/or left-wing perspectives to truly complex, multifaceted political issues.

FIVE created the Independent Voter Network (IVN) to be a new kind of news network. IVN provides unfiltered political news and policy analysis across the political spectrum. IVN has a unique, multi-site platform that allows independent contributors from all sectors of industry and all walks of life to publish their own stories, which then reach a large, national and international audience. IVN also provides a forum for users to engage in political dialogue and rational commentary, in hopes of elevating the level of our public discourse.

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Board Members

Steve Peace

Chairman
From 1982 through 2003, Senator Peace served in the California State Capitol as a member of the State Assembly, a State Senator and as the State’s Director of Finance. In 2010, as Co-chair of the California Independent Voter Project, Mr. Peace wrote the Constitutional Amendment subsequently passed by voters to require California to abolish its semi-closed partisan primary system in favor of open nonpartisan primary elections.
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Dan Schnur

Executive Publisher
Dan Schnur is a Professor at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Communications, the University of California – Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies and Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy. Previously, Dan worked on four presidential and three gubernatorial campaigns as one of California’s leading political strategists. He served as the national Director of Communications for the 2000 presidential campaign of U.S. Senator John McCain and was the chief media spokesman for California Governor Pete Wilson.
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Regina Evans

Board Member
Regina is a San Diego, California based attorney with over 23 years of professional experience as a political, government, and non-profit leader. She is currently the Senior Vice President, Business Development with Information Management Resources, Incorporated (IMRI), an information technology and engineering company headquartered in Aliso Viejo, California.Regina previously served as Chief of Staff to the Honorable Jerome E. Horton, Chairman of the California State Board of Equalization, and Deputy Cabinet Secretary for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. She recently received the Distinguished Government Service Award from the California Legislative Black Caucus.
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Floyd Mori

Board Member
S. Floyd Mori is an American of Japanese heritage. He has been an Educator, Politician, Author, Entrepreneur, International Business Consultant, and President/CEO of Non- profit Organizations.
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Stephen Walker

Board Member
Stephen is a California resident and lifelong activist in the areas of child protection and crime prevention. He is currently the director of Governmental Affairs for the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA). Prior to this, he worked within the California Youth Authority for 26 years as a youth correctional officer. He also served as a jet mechanic and plane captain in United States Marine Corp. Stephen currently serves as vice chair for Protect, a national non-profit dedicated to protect children from physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, is the President and founding member of Minorities In Law Enforcement 4 Kids (Mile4kids), is a board member of Child Abuse Prevention Center (CAPC) and is a founding member of the Governor’s Cup Foundation.
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Dan Howle

Board Member
An East Coast native, Dan Howle is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where he majored in history and political science. Dan recently retired after 16 years as Director of State Government Relations for a major pharmaceutical manufacturer, Eli Lilly and Company. Mr. Howle serves on the boards of the California Governor’s Cup Foundation, the Foundation for Independent Voter Education, and the National Association of Nonpartisan Reformers.
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The Other Side Documentary

FIVE partnered with independent film-maker Joe McGovern to produce “The Other Side: A Liberal Democrat Explores Conservative America”.

In times of extreme partisanship, Joe demonstrates the value of talking to one another, as opposed to talking against one another. And he does it in a way that is lighthearted, engaging, and informative. FIVE provided technical support, outreach, and funding for the production and we could not be more proud of the final product Joe has put together.