Presidential Nominations

Presidential Nominations

Description

The risks of political extremism are particularly great if a politically extreme figure can capture the presidency, with all its attendant actual and rhetorical powers. For the first 170 or so years of American history, this risk was mitigated by the need for party nominees to gain the support of elected party figures at all levels of government throughout the country. But with the shift in the 1970s to the system of direct primary elections for choosing party nominees, we believe the risk of more demagogic, extreme figures capturing the nomination of one or both parties—and hence the presidency—has increased. Given the US commitment to choosing nominees through direct primaries, however, we offer several potential means of working within the existing system to reduce the risk of more extremist candidates capturing a party’s nomination. We also offer suggestions for how to improve the primary debate process. Primary debates should play a significant role in informing party voters of the quality and policy positions of various candidates. Especially in large primary fields, which are increasingly common, these debates should help voters identify important distinctions among candidates within the party. We believe there are numerous ways of improving the primary debate process to enable it to play that role more effectively. The second part of this chapter provides those recommendations and the justifications for them.

First Page

221

Source Publication

Electoral Reform in the United States: Proposals for Combating Polarization and Extremism

Source Editors/Authors

Larry Diamond, Edward B. Foley, Richard H. Pildes

Publication Date

12-5-2024

Publisher

Lynne Rienner Publishers

Presidential Nominations

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