Free Republic

Presidents Day next February may have a whole new meaning.It's likely that a third of all presidential primaries and caucuses will be held in the first two months of 2008, which means the parties' nominees could be known by early February, thanks to an "earlier the better" front-loading strategy emerging on the political landscape. Critics warn the strategy will bypass many voters and lengthen the general-election campaign well in advance of the November vote. In the previous primary season, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry effectively nailed down the 2004 Democratic nomination by March 2. But strategists in both parties now say...

Today I saw several signs urging me to vote for Garland Hogshed. Now, I don’t know Mr. Garland from Adam’s cat. Not whether he is a Republican, Democrat, liberal, conservative, incumbent or challenger. I only know he’s running for Commissioner in Clay County, North Carolina. But he has a sturdy Southern name which belongs on a local official hereabouts. That brings us to the subjects of this column, local officials and early primaries. Unlike most states, North Carolina has a very early primary, May 2nd. Why is this? Many times I’ve read the bromide that “America has two major parties,...