Skip to comments.
Brief campaign should be norm
OCRegister.com ^
| 10/15/03
| Erik Pattersen
Posted on 10/15/2003 9:31:09 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
Edited on 04/14/2004 10:06:26 PM PDT by Jim Robinson.
[history]
With the recall behind us, it is time to reflect on its positive lessons. The primary lesson has to do with the length of elections. During the summer, recall critics argued that the short election cycle would hurt voters. But they were wrong on several counts.
(Excerpt) Read more at 2.ocregister.com ...
TOPICS: Editorial; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: brief; campaign; catrans; election; recall; recallanalysis; shouldbenorm
To: NormsRevenge
2
posted on
10/15/2003 2:24:42 PM PDT
by
DoctorZIn
To: NormsRevenge
Oh boy, do I agree on shorter elections.
These 2-yr campaigns are disgusting.
However .. it would not allow the "unknown" to get known. I think that would favor the incumbent waaaaaay too much.
3
posted on
10/15/2003 2:58:34 PM PDT
by
CyberAnt
To: NormsRevenge
It would better to cut the amount of the time to three months. One to nominate candidates and two to campaign in the general election. Countries with parliamentary systems typically take four weeks to choose a new government. The time for Ontario's recent provincial election was a mere 30 days from the dissolution of the outgoing provincial parliament to the day the voters elected the new one. Our elections won't probably be that short but there's no reason we can't have elections in a 90 day cycle. California's recall election demonstrated it can be done.
4
posted on
10/15/2003 7:00:30 PM PDT
by
goldstategop
(In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives On In My Heart Forever)
To: CyberAnt
Really? Then explain how Ontario voters chose a challenger over the incumbent government in the space of a month. I would think the kind of prolonged political campaigns we have tend to favor incumbents more than challengers due to the cost and the time required to win. Shortening the election cycle would give incumbents less time to raise cash and put them and challengers on a more or less even playing field simply by taking from incumbents the luxury of time to confuse the issues and launch last minute attacks on challengers to keep themselves in power. It seems to me that like everything else in life, less is more is the principle that sounds better.
5
posted on
10/15/2003 7:05:35 PM PDT
by
goldstategop
(In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives On In My Heart Forever)
To: NormsRevenge
... the essential issue: Gray Davis' mismanagement of the economy... Revisionist cad! I never heard anyone blame the, soon-to-be, ex-governor for a slowly recovering economy. His crimes were much more personal: corrupt, pay to play, politics; abrogation of leadership in the face of difficulty; and betrayal of fiduciary trust.
Oh yeah, and hiding behind the skirts of a complicit press.
To: goldstategop
Well .. you make a good point .. but I'm still concerned about an unknown running against a well-known incumbent.
7
posted on
10/15/2003 8:34:35 PM PDT
by
CyberAnt
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson