Primary Calendar Serves Few

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/28/AR2007012800951.html

Primary Calendar Serves Few

By Timothy Ryan
Monday, January 29, 2007;

In 2004, John Kerry acquired enough delegates to become the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee in mid-March, weeks before voters in more than a dozen states cast insignificant ballots in taxpayer-funded elections. With California, Illinois, Florida, New Jersey and New Hampshire weighing controversial changes to their primary schedules, we should consider how the current scheduling system effectively disenfranchises millions of Americans.

Since today's system was implemented in the 1970s, the earliest nomination contests have grown steadily in importance. Iowa and New Hampshire alone typically receive about a third of the early newspaper coverage and the bulk of the candidates' early spending and time.

California, with its 1,100-plus delegates, long ago set its contest late in the season, hoping to be the behemoth that determines the nominee. But as the early nominations took on greater importance, California's role diminished. Out of frustration, it might move up its primary date. To ensure their relevance, Florida and New Hampshire are even considering violating national party rules that govern primary scheduling, which could make their delegates legally ineligible to participate in the convention.

What took so long? The resignation with which most states have adhered to the arbitrary favoritism of party-constructed calendars is surprising.

...

The writer is a research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute.

[illinoisprogressive]

1. there needs to be some serious dealing with this situation.

This is not right for the states to just move it but, I also see their point.
My own state really has no reason to move up. Mike Madigan wants to move it up to favor Obama. though I support him for prez I dont' see the need to screw around with it. I thought that having the 2 usual states and including one western state and one southern was a good idea. This is getting out of hand.