Civics: The Electoral College and Primaries
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direct primary
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an intra-party election; held within a party to pick that party's candidates for the general election; primaries are party-nominating elections and are closely regulated by law in most states Who can vote? -Cannot vote in jail or territories but can abroad
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primaries
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private voting all day long, in state elections
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closed primary
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a party nominating election in which only declared party members can vote; party membership is established by registration; used by 26 states and D.C. -CT is closed-primary state
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how a closed primary works
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1. voters appear at polling places on primary election day and their names are checked against the poll books (lists of registered voters for every precinct) 2. each voter is handed the ballot of the party in which he or she is registered. the voter can only mark that party's ballot
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open primary
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a party nominating election in which any qualified voter can take part; used by 24 states
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how an open primary works
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1. voters go to their polling places in some open primary States 2. they are handed the ballots of each of the parties holding a primary election 3. voters pick the party primary in which they wish to participate in the privacy of the voting booth in other open primary states, voters must ask for ballot of party in whose primary they want to participate, meaning they have to make a public choice of party
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blanket primary
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\"wide open primary\", every voter received the same primary ballot (a long one containing the names of all contenders, regardless of party, for each nomination to be made at the primary election); voters could participate in primary however they chose; confine themselves to one party's primary by voting to nominate only one party's candidates or could switch back and forth b/w parties' primaries -violated the right of association
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pros of closed primary
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1. it prevents one party from \"raiding\" the other's primary in the hope of nominating weaker candidates in the other party 2. it helps make candidates more responsive to the party, its platform, and its members 3. it helps make voters more thoughtful, b/c they must choose b/w parties in order to vote in the primaries
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cons of closed primary
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1. it compromises the secrecy of the ballot b/c it forces voters to make their party preferences known in public 2. it tends to exclude independent voters from the nomination process
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pros of open primary
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1. voters are not forced to make their party preferences known in public 2. tendency to exclude independent voters is eliminated 3. may get more voters 4. can vote for best candidate in another party
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cons of open primary
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1. permits primary \"raiding\" 2. undercuts the concepts of party loyalty and party responsibility
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semi closed primary
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registration does not matter, but can only vote in one
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runoff primary
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if no one wins a majority in a race, a runoff primary is held a few weeks later. the two top vote-getters in the first party primary face one another, and the winner of that vote becomes the nominee
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nonpartisan elections
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elections in which candidates are not identified by party labels
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bedsheet ballot
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long list of candidates that typically appears on the primary ballot
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petition
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the process usually required by State law for nominating minor party and independent candidates
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caucus
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public voting at specific time -Used to be used by federalists and democratic-republicans to choose P and VP (lack of communication and transportation) -Still used to make local nominations in some places
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5 ways nominations are made
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1. self-announcement 2. caucus 3. convention 4. direct primary 5. petition
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Self-announcement
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-small town and rural levels -failure to win party nomination or dissatisfaction with its choice -all write-in candidates
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Convention
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-local primaries select delegates to send to county convention, then to state convention, then to national -In most states, conventions have been replaced with direct primaries (CT is an exception)
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Election Day
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First Tuesday after a Monday in Novemeber
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Democratic vs Republican Caucus
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-Republican: less time commitment; In Iowa, listen to speech, vote privately, go home -Democratic: Arrive and remain in specific room for specific period of time; lower turnout; In Iowa, Gather in groups or uncommitted, If <15%, commit to another group
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Why register under a party?
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-Support can translate to funding -Vote in closed primaries
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Balancing the ticket
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-A presidential candidate who is nominated will choose a running mate -Will often choose based on appeal to voters the candidate can not appeal to
