Why Not Me? 2028
What if a regular person ran for President?
Why Not Me? is a smart, thoughtful, sometimes funny podcast about one woman’s journey to ask that question — out loud. Shana is not a celebrity, not a billionaire, and not backed by a political machine. She’s a former nonprofit worker and PTA fundraiser, and current higher ed employee who’s spent her life working, parenting, and trying to make things better from the ground up.
In each episode, she explores what it would actually take for someone like her to run for the highest office in the land — from policy ideas to campaign hurdles, from civic curiosity to systemic barriers. Along the way, she asks bigger questions about leadership, representation, and what democracy really means in 21st-century America.
This isn’t a show about bashing politicians or pushing an agenda. It’s about making space for new voices, honest conversations, and people who’ve never seen themselves in power. If you've ever looked at a ballot and thought, “Seriously? These are my choices?” — this podcast is for you.
Why Not Me? 2028
Two Parties? Why Not More? Why Not None?
Episode Summary:
In this episode, we ask a question that might sound radical… until you sit with it for a minute: Do we actually need political parties?
Along the way, we talk about how those party dynamics impact our elections, our discourse, and the people who feel left behind by a system that only offers two choices.
So: What would politics look like if we stripped away the party labels and focused on what we actually believe? And is it possible to reclaim the idea of representation — not for a team, but for a country?
References & Resources:
- Federalist Paper No. 10 – James Madison on factions
- Brookings Institution – What Political Parties Do
- Pew Research Center – The shifting coalitions within each party
- Ballot Access News – Ongoing coverage of third-party and independent ballot access struggles
- OpenSecrets – Data on campaign finance and party fundraising
- FairVote – Resources on Ranked Choice Voting and alternatives to two-party dominance
- Ezra Klein, Why We’re Polarized – Insight into how our modern party system feeds division
Call to Action:
Think about the last time you voted. Did you vote for someone because you believed in them — or because they were “your party’s” candidate?
What if more of us stopped voting like team captains and started voting like citizens?
And if you’ve ever thought, “I could never run for office — I’m not a Democrat or a Republican…’
What if that wasn’t a disqualifier — but a superpower?
Contact:
Do you have a story to tell, or a comment to make? Email me at shana@whynontme2028.com
Use this link to send us a text, or email us at the address in show notes.
shana@whynotme2028.com
Credits
Graphics and editing by Rory Lawson
Music by Universfield from Pixabay