2008 Woodie Awards
Primaries ostracize voters
Issue date: 11/1/07 Section: Editorial
- Page 1 of 1
It should be becoming increasingly apparent to citizens of the United States, and Tennessee in particular, that their votes do not really count as much as they would like.
Unless you happen to live in certain states, your vote could be as meaningless as your call into "American Idol."
Consider, for example, the 2000 presidential election, which saw millions of votes filtered through the electoral college, rendered useless because their state had a simple plurality going to the other candidate.
And don't forget that Al Gore actually collected more votes from U.S. citizens than George W. Bush that year. Democracy does not mean anything if a group of people votes for one person and another gets elected.
Then there's the problem of the upcoming primary. With the glut of coverage it's gotten, its hard to realize its still just the primary, we're still just trying to pick who will have a shot at being president.
So far, however, its obvious that most voters are ignored in our current primary system. Everything is focused on New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Iowa, leaving states like Tennessee behind.
Candidates can get a lot of momentum early on in the game by winning those states' primaries, so they end up pouring millions of dollars into advertising in a few states, just because of the traditional date of their primaries.
All voters and the issues they care about should be addressed by the candidates. The only purpose our current primary system serves is to disenfranchise the voters from certain states whose primaries are too late to matter.
What's worse is that certain states, such as Michigan, are threatening to move their own primaries earlier and earlier to make their states significant, while the parties attempt to thwart their efforts.
It's obvious the current situation is far too complicated and needlessly burdensome. The U.S. should simply adopt a national primary system in which every state casts its votes at the same time.
Just as the electoral college is an antiquated institution that has outlived its purpose, so is our current system of primaries.
Unless you happen to live in certain states, your vote could be as meaningless as your call into "American Idol."
Consider, for example, the 2000 presidential election, which saw millions of votes filtered through the electoral college, rendered useless because their state had a simple plurality going to the other candidate.
And don't forget that Al Gore actually collected more votes from U.S. citizens than George W. Bush that year. Democracy does not mean anything if a group of people votes for one person and another gets elected.
Then there's the problem of the upcoming primary. With the glut of coverage it's gotten, its hard to realize its still just the primary, we're still just trying to pick who will have a shot at being president.
So far, however, its obvious that most voters are ignored in our current primary system. Everything is focused on New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Iowa, leaving states like Tennessee behind.
Candidates can get a lot of momentum early on in the game by winning those states' primaries, so they end up pouring millions of dollars into advertising in a few states, just because of the traditional date of their primaries.
All voters and the issues they care about should be addressed by the candidates. The only purpose our current primary system serves is to disenfranchise the voters from certain states whose primaries are too late to matter.
What's worse is that certain states, such as Michigan, are threatening to move their own primaries earlier and earlier to make their states significant, while the parties attempt to thwart their efforts.
It's obvious the current situation is far too complicated and needlessly burdensome. The U.S. should simply adopt a national primary system in which every state casts its votes at the same time.
Just as the electoral college is an antiquated institution that has outlived its purpose, so is our current system of primaries.
