Good point. I keep forgetting that all the other Cruz wins were caucuses and such.
I consider myself a close follower of presidential politics but I don't remember a year where there were so many darn caucuses and other contests where the rank and file weren't allowed to actually cast votes.
Was it always this way or did we have a lot more of them this go-around?
Not anything to do with the Trump/Cruz discussion, but as a voter, I would much rather stop by the poll before going to work and privately cast my vote for the candidate I have already decided on, than to have to caucus at certain time, spending hours with people trying to change my mind. Although everyone has the opportunity to caucus, it seems many people are disenfranchised as it may cause a hardship for them to attend.
It’s always this way. Usually it doesn’t matter because the party coalesces around the leader.
In this case, since Trump is singularly unelectable and unqualified, and is leading a rebellion against his own party, it is little surprise that the fight goes on.
Now, for the first time since 1976 all of these little details may matter a lot.
Interesting times.
Always been this way. Primaries are a relatively new thing.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_primary
I think caucuses were necessary prior to easy travel and widespread communications. Caucus type events where delegates were selected starting at the local level made sense. Some states never adopted primaries and some states (like Colorado https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Caucus had a brief flirtation with primaries). Both systems have their pluses and minuses.
Did you read Trump’s Op-ed in the WSJ posted on FR yesterday? It’s excellent - simple, to the point, and anyone can understand the problem with the political machinery by reading it. He condenses it.
“Was it always this way...?”
Yes. Although many states also have a primary that binds those delegates on the first (sometimes second ballot). And in most elections the Primary only states decide things early on, so the caucus system doesn’t usually play a role.
This year, with things being fairly close, those caucus delegates may play a role in the nomination.
Even Colorado has not had a binding primary in many years.
And the caucus system isn’t just for the insiders. Any registered Republican can go in to their neighborhood precinct and vote. And because hardly anyone is interested in them, they will probably also be able to go to their county caucus and vote there as well.
Heck, it was my first time and I will be going to the Washington State convention where I will be able to vote on who we send to the national convention. I’m guessing I won’t be going though!
The whole reason the delegate system was put i place by the founding fathers was to protect the country from a populist president. We are a republic, not a democracy.