Who's the next Governor of Maryland (North Beach: credit, office, roach)

[InvaderBryce]

Originally Posted by westsideboy

Interesting. Franchot has been out here at least twice for high profile visits this year, including at a Maryland Coal Association meeting, followed by meet and greet with the local Democratic movers and shakers.

2014 would be a great year for an open primary (I know, keep dreaming ,) I would vote the Dem primary ticket if a Pro-Business Dem had a shot at the Governor's Mansion.

Seems like an oxymoron if you ask me.

[MidValleyDad]

You're not going to see an open primary in MD. It scares the Dem machine too much

[North Beach Person]

If by "open primary" you mean Democrats can vote in the Republican Primary or vice versa why would any political party want that?

Like it or not we have a party system of politics (and yes I know Washington warned against it) and primaries are the method we use to select the party candidate for office. We could go to a caucus system but that's even less democratic.

[InvaderBryce]

We could try the system that California currently has which is essentially a modified version of a Nonpartisan blanket primary.

In California, under Proposition 14 (Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act), a voter-approved referendum, in all races except for that for U.S. President and county central committee offices, all candidates running in a primary election regardless of party will appear on a single primary election ballot and voters may vote for any candidate, with the top two vote-getters overall move on to the general election regardless of party.

The effect of this is that it will be possible for two Republicans or two Democrats to compete against each other in a general election if those candidates receive the most primary-election support.

Source: Wikipedia

[HurricaneDC]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

If by "open primary" you mean Democrats can vote in the Republican Primary or vice versa why would any political party want that?

Like it or not we have a party system of politics (and yes I know Washington warned against it) and primaries are the method we use to select the party candidate for office. We could go to a caucus system but that's even less democratic.

Several states have open primaries, including ones better than MD.

[LoveToRow]

Too many leftwing moonbats in Maryland means the next governor will be yet another tax and spend big government statist.

It will finally change once enough producers leave the state, which I highly encourage.

[Cruzincat]

Originally Posted by Trace21230

Too many leftwing moonbats in Maryland means the next governor will be yet another tax and spend big government statist.

It will finally change once enough producers leave the state, which I highly encourage.

If you research "the Curley effect", you will see that the opposite is likely to occur. By driving out the producers, who would tend to vote for the opposition, the idiots will hang on to their power. We are soon to reach the point of no return, if we haven't already. Those who leave the state early on will be the better off.

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

If by "open primary" you mean Democrats can vote in the Republican Primary or vice versa why would any political party want that?

Like it or not we have a party system of politics (and yes I know Washington warned against it) and primaries are the method we use to select the party candidate for office. We could go to a caucus system but that's even less democratic.

As it stands, candidates have to cater to a small, normally more polarized, base to get voted through to the general, then figure out how to move back to the middle of the political spectrum to appeal to enough independants and fence-sitters to win in the general. Allowing an open primary would enable candidates to skip the "I am the most Republican Republican in the Republic" rhetoric and focus on issues that effect the entire electorate from the start. Their reward would be independant and cross-parties votes in the primary, and the always politically ackward "etch-a-sketch" moments when they have to explain why the heavy partisan talk from the primary season has been replaced by more moderate positions.

The minority party shouldn't mind an open primary as it would give Independants and "fence-sitting" members of the other party a chance to nominate a candidate that can win a general election. Moderate, anti-establishment, GOP candidates could win this way, appealing to the entire electorate, and attracting cross party votes early in the process.

It may weaken the power of the party central committees and political machines, but in Maryland there is no centralized GOP power to speak of anyway.

At any rate an open primary is good for the voters. It gives them more options, and doesn't force a person to pick between being a R or a D just for the right to vote in meaningful primary races. In theory, government (who runs elections) is there to serve the people, not political parties.

It won't ever happen in Maryland though, as an open primary doesn't benefit a political party with a huge majority.

[North Beach Person]

It also doesn't benefit a minority party. Going back to Ehrlich, do you really think, knowing kathleen KENNEDY townsend's shortcomings, that there wouldn't have been a concerted effort by Democrats to cross vote in an open primary for Ehrlich's primary opponent? I forget who that was but for some reason I think one of them was Robin Ficker from Montgomery County.

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by westsideboy

As it stands, candidates have to cater to a small, normally more polarized, base to get voted through to the general, then figure out how to move back to the middle of the political spectrum to appeal to enough independants and fence-sitters to win in the general. Allowing an open primary would enable candidates to skip the "I am the most Republican Republican in the Republic" rhetoric and focus on issues that effect the entire electorate from the start.

How about educating the end zone populace to avoid the rhetoric and focus on issues that
effect the entire electorate so that the even better people but perhaps less extreme would run?
Yeah, I think I'd rather have more choices than just rejiggering the choices already there.


Cyndi Lauper "True Colors" - YouTube