Sorry if my post was misleading. In Michigan, you identify as one or the other ONLY for the primaries not the general elections. When we go into vote in the primaries we tell them which party's ballot we want. Then in the general election whoever won in their primary for both parties is on the ballot. That's why voting in both the primaries and general elections is so important.
Sorry if my post was misleading. In Michigan, you identify as one or the other ONLY for the primaries not the general elections. When we go into vote in the primaries we tell them which party's ballot we want. Then in the general election whoever won in their primary for both parties is on the ballot. That's why voting in both the primaries and general elections is so important.
Some use a "jungle primary," where every candidate regardless of party runs in a primary, and then in jungle primaries there are variations on whether the top two (California) or top four (Alaska) (or some other number) proceed to the general election, which can have even more variation including ranked choice (Alaska) or simple majority vote (California).
Correct, no two of the 50 are identical, although most have either an open or closed two-party primary and a general election that - in most cases - pits the two traditional parties against one another - at least for statewide and most congressional races.
Local elections are often - in theory - "non-partisan," but partisan differences cleave deep these days even in traditionally non-partisan elections for school boards, sewer districts and city councils.
Great explanations of most of this stuff at Ballotpedia.
Heavens yes. Those of us who studied American politics in political science classes appreciate all the moving parts and multiple dimensions and what James Madison called "faction," before that term came to have such a pejorative connotation.
Madison described "faction" in Federalist Paper #10, one in a series of late 1880s monographs to convince the colonies to adopt the Constitution after the failure of the Articles of Confederation.
Sorry if my post was misleading. In Michigan, you identify as one or the other ONLY for the primaries not the general elections. When we go into vote in the primaries we tell them which party's ballot we want. Then in the general election whoever won in their primary for both parties is on the ballot. That's why voting in both the primaries and general elections is so important.
Thanks, Colette.
It's called the "closed primary system."
Not all states use it.
Some use a "jungle primary," where every candidate regardless of party runs in a primary, and then in jungle primaries there are variations on whether the top two (California) or top four (Alaska) (or some other number) proceed to the general election, which can have even more variation including ranked choice (Alaska) or simple majority vote (California).
More complicated than chess. "United States" is a romantic misnomer! :)
Because the constitution gives primary (not total) control of the process of elections. So there can be 50 variations.
Correct, no two of the 50 are identical, although most have either an open or closed two-party primary and a general election that - in most cases - pits the two traditional parties against one another - at least for statewide and most congressional races.
Local elections are often - in theory - "non-partisan," but partisan differences cleave deep these days even in traditionally non-partisan elections for school boards, sewer districts and city councils.
Great explanations of most of this stuff at Ballotpedia.
https://ballotpedia.org/Main_Page
Heavens yes. Those of us who studied American politics in political science classes appreciate all the moving parts and multiple dimensions and what James Madison called "faction," before that term came to have such a pejorative connotation.
Madison described "faction" in Federalist Paper #10, one in a series of late 1880s monographs to convince the colonies to adopt the Constitution after the failure of the Articles of Confederation.
https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed10.asp
Exactly