Explain to me why this isn't crazy

[Bucky]

January 14th Iowa caucuses
January 19th Nevada Democratic caucuses
January 22nd New Hampshire primary, Wyoming Republican county conventions (POSSIBLY)
January 29th South Carolina Democratic primary, South Dakota primary (POSSIBLY), Florida primary (POSSIBLY)
February 2nd South Carolina Republican primary, Oklahoma primary (POSSIBLY)

February 5th Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California (POSSIBLY), Delaware, Florida (POSSIBLY), Idaho (POSSIBLY), Illinois (POSSIBLY), Michigan , Missouri, Montana, New Jersey (POSSIBLY), New Mexico, North Carolina, Utah primaries; Nevada Republican primary; North Dakota caucuses (DAMN!) It could be over by this date

February 9th Louisiana Republican primary (POSSIBLY)
February 10th Maine Democratic caucuses
February 12th Tennessee, Virginia primaries
February 19th Wisconsin primary
February 26th Hawaii Democratic caucuses
March 2nd Hawaii Republican caucuses

March 4th Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont primaries; Minnesota caucuses the last serious runner up drops out here

Below are the states whose opinions simply don't matter. If you live in here, only your money makes you count.

March 7th Colorado Democratic primary
March 11th Mississippi, Pennsylvania primaries
March 8th Wyoming Democratic caucuses (POSSIBLY)
March 11th Washington Republican primary
March 15th Alaska Democratic caucuses
March 21st Maine Republican caucuses
April 1st Kansas primary
April 15th Colorado Republican primary
May 6th Indiana primary
May 13th Nebraska, West Virginia primaries
May 20th Kentucky, Oregon primaries
May 27th Washington Democratic primary

[boobooday]

1. Sorry, can't do it

I think it's crazy too.

:crazy:

[DURHAM D]

2. On Feb 5th - could you clarify as to which states have primaries

and which ones are caucus states. Maybe you have already indicated but it is not clear to me. Thanks by the way for this info.

[Bucky]

7. Judging from how Larry Sabato's site lists 'em, I think all but North Dakota are primaries.

I just cutted and pasteded from his site. The word choice is entirely his.

[DURHAM D]

8. I am a little confused about North Carolina.

In 2004 the Dems had a state convention to choose delegates to the National Convention because the state wide primary was going to be held so late and they wanted to be a player. I guess that the party had the option of sending the caucus delegation to national convention or using the results of the primary - I don't really know.

This year I don't know which direction they are headed. Anyone?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Why is there not a national primary on one single day?

Sucks that the voters in just a handful of states get to decide who the nominee is, and the votes of all the rest of us make no difference.

[Bucky]

4. The advantage of spreading it out geogaphically & calendar wise is democratic

It's more small-d democratic if you break up the contest into several elections over 3-4 months. One big primary, such as we're heading toward, only makes it more likely that the big bucks candidate with the slickest media campaign will win every time. Imagine for the rest of this century the White House is only owned by a series of superficial Dubya types and the sorts of empty jars whom millionaires feel like giving their money to.

The small contests become more like retail-level politics. Candidates have to meet voters in person and answer tough, unscreened questions that real people care about, not the crotch-sniffing scandal mongering that Washington Beltway pundits get off to.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. "Crotch-sniffing scandal mongering"! LOL!

I see your point. I just wish there were some way to make the votes cast by residents of late-primary states count. As it is now, if your primary/caucus occurs after the first week in March you might as well not even bother. In 2004 my vote didn't matter and it pissed me off.

[Bucky]

6. I'd like to see a series of eight to 10 regional primaries, ordered by lot, at two week intervals

You'd have a Pacific Northwest primary, a Rocky Mountain primary, a Deep South primary, MidAtlantic, Great Lakes.... Also rule out the winner-take-all delegate allotment. Any candidate who breaks 15% of a primary take gets that proportion of a state's delegates. This would keep the race active till the end of the process, including most of the states in the competitive voting, but still avoid a brokered convention.

The trick of course is getting the states to voluntarily give up their preferential positioning. That will never happen.

[Kiouni]

9. Booohh-Errns I live in Nebraska.

[Redneck Socialist]

10. It's nuts

It needs to be more spread out.