Texans - Especially Austinites: Can anyone explain this?

[Intelsucks]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x1197745

[VelmaD]

1. Was that a serious question?

I'm having a really hard time figuring out if it's supposed to be a joke or not?

[Intelsucks]

3. Not a joke. Neither of us knew that there was such a thing as a local

primary. Now we do. You learn something new every day.:o

[VelmaD]

5. Congrats on your first Texas primary (I'm assuming)

Yup. We gotta have local primaries for races where the candidates declare party affiliations. (We don't do that in City Council races because the candidates don't run from the parties.) The local primary is the way you whittle the local candidates down when there's more than one running for an office from a particular party. (i.e some people in Austin have to decide whether to vote for Lloyd Doggett or his primary oppenent) You can also write-in officially declared write-in candidates in the primaries.

[Intelsucks]

7. Thanks again.

n/t

[VelmaD]

9. It's cool

I kinda feel like a civics teacher (which sadly enough was my childhood dream job).

Go to your precinct convention. *wags finger* ;)

[Sandstorm]

2. It's a primary

That's how it works. You vote either D or R. I don't understand what the confusion is all about.

[pmbryant]

4. Looks like your questions have been answered

Thanks for voting.

:hi:

Peter

[GOPisEvil]

6. Welcome to Primary Voting!

:hi:

Of course the general election allows you to vote for whomever you choose of any party on the ballot. No need to declare a party then.

What the stamp on your voter card allows is admission into the Precint Convention held after the polls close on Tuesday. Obviously, as resolutions are made to the party platform and delegates to the state convention are chosen, they only want stated members of the party in attendance. :-)

Also obviously I can't type. :P

[VelmaD]

8. You need the proof that you voted...

to participate in the precinct convention at all - it's part of the rules, you can only vote on things in the precinct convention if you actually voted in the primary.

This is your official Lounge co-precinct chair begging you all to go to your precinct conventions. There are a lot of really important resolutions out there this year. (I got my packet with the ones for Austin a couple of days ago and there are a bunch of them on good solid issues that we need to poke our party about.)

[Intelsucks]

10. You know what's really scary?

The times that I have voted on election day at my particular precinct location, I always ask them how many people voted. They usually tell me that myself and about 20 other people voted in my entire precinct. This would not account for early voters, but it really makes you wonder...

[GOPisEvil]

11. It's sad how many people just don't give a shit...

...of course, how anyone could not care these days is beyond me.

[Intelsucks]

12. If the events of the last few years don't get every single voter to the

polls, then I guess nothing ever will.

[VelmaD]

13. That a good reason to go to the precinct convention...

there's a really high chance you would become a delegate to the County convention and get to vote on resolutions there to send them on to the State party convention. Hell, you might even end up at the State convention...ya never know.

[GOPisEvil]

15. As a delegate for whom?

My candidate dropped out. :-(

But then, I guess I could vote on all the fun resolutions and make the party conform to my evil whims! Muahahaa!

[bearfan454]

14. I didn't know you were that involved VelmaD

Wow.

[VelmaD]

16. I am now

I was really involved back when I was 18 or 19 and then dropped out for a while. Recently I discovered I had no precinct chair so I volunteered to do it. And here I am.