Voter registration.

[Stiletto]

I have read in some posts that when one enrols as a voter in the USA you can nominate which party you are aligned with, and register accordingly. Is this correct? and what is the purpose of that?

Here in NZ one is free to join and vote for whatever party one likes. The government and its agencies have no official means of determining one's alliances, which seems like a good idea to me.

[Ian McColgin]

Upon registration one can identify a party or independent. In all states, a member of a party may vote in the primaries for a candidate of that party. In many states, Independents can also vote in whatever primary they chose.

[UCanoe_2]

The rules vary from state to state. Here in Virginia, there is no registration by party. Dems can cross over and vote in Rep primaries, and vice versa; you do have to choose one primary or the other and can't vote in both. Someone from another state will have to explain the purpose of party registration. I don't see any good in it.

[johnw]

I have read in some posts that when one enrols as a voter in the USA you can nominate which party you are aligned with, and register accordingly. Is this correct? and what is the purpose of that?

Here in NZ one is free to join and vote for whatever party one likes. The government and its agencies have no official means of determining one's alliances, which seems like a good idea to me.

In my state, we don't register by party, and anyone can vote for any candidate in the primaries. It would be better if we had ranked choice voting, but the jungle primary is a start.

[Nicholas Carey]

I have read in some posts that when one enrols as a voter in the USA you can nominate which party you are aligned with, and register accordingly. Is this correct? and what is the purpose of that?

Here in the States, the two-party system is baked into law.

Some (most? many?) states have partisan primary elections (primary elections determine what candidates make it to the general election).

In those states, one is often required to declare a party affiliation at the polling place for the primary election. That determine which ballot you get.

The general election is [sort of] party agnostic. But a candidate's party affiliation is listed next to her/his name. And some states give you the option to vote a straight party line by making a si glue selection.

As long as that party is either the Democratic or Republican Party.

It's an effed up system, and George Washington was right - allowing the emergence of political parties was a huge error.

The two-party system is baked into law (as are the Democratic and Republican parties).

The system has been designed to prevent the emergence of other parties.

[Peerie Maa]

Here in the States, the two-party system is baked into law.

Some (most? many?) states have partisan primary elections (primary elections determine what candidates make it to the general election).

In those states, one is often required to declare a party affiliation at the polling place for the primary election. That determine which ballot you get.

The general election is [sort of] party agnostic. But a candidate's party affiliation is listed next to her/his name. And some states give you the option to vote a straight party line by making a si glue selection.

As long as that party is either the Democratic or Republican Party.

It's an effed up system, and George Washington was right - allowing the emergence of political parties was a huge error.

The two-party system is baked into law (as are the Democratic and Republican parties).

The system has been designed to prevent the emergence of other parties.

So much for the principle of "secret" elections.

[Boatbum]

Here in the States, the two-party system is baked into law.

Some (most? many?) states have partisan primary elections (primary elections determine what candidates make it to the general election).

In those states, one is often required to declare a party affiliation at the polling place for the primary election. That determine which ballot you get.

The general election is [sort of] party agnostic. But a candidate's party affiliation is listed next to her/his name. And some states give you the option to vote a straight party line by making a si glue selection.

As long as that party is either the Democratic or Republican Party.

It's an effed up system, and George Washington was right - allowing the emergence of political parties was a huge error.

The two-party system is baked into law (as are the Democratic and Republican parties).

The system has been designed to prevent the emergence of other parties.

How so? I thought it was just the opposite. The system had been set up without the expectation that there would be any political parties. Was there a law that codified a two party system? I must have missed it..

[Paul Pless]

America’s Hidden Duopoly

We all know our political system is “broken” — but what if that’s not true? Some say the Republicans and Democrats constitute a wildly successful industry that has colluded to kill off competition, stifle reform, and drive the country apart.

https://freakonomics.com/podcast/ame...den-duopoly-2/

[Stiletto]

Thanks for the replies.
In forming my views on how well different systems work I have to remember that NZ is roughly the same size as Colorado with a similar population to Louisiana.
It seems to me that the practical management of elections is easier with a small population. With a referendum we changed from essentially a two party 'first past the post' system in 1993 to the proportional MMP system we now have.

[Nicholas Carey]

America’s Hidden Duopoly

We all know our political system is “broken” — but what if that’s not true? Some say the Republicans and Democrats constitute a wildly successful industry that has colluded to kill off competition, stifle reform, and drive the country apart.

https://freakonomics.com/podcast/ame...den-duopoly-2/

The essential problem is that neither party is terribly interested -- as an organism — in any sort of real change, because while, yes, the reins of power do move from ne party to the other, the cash flow continues unabated.

It is a self-serving duopoly.

[Peerie Maa]

We have just registered to vote.
We received a communication through the mail listing those of voting age at our address. If the list was correct, we did not have to do owt. If a child had achieved voting age, or someone had moved in with us or moved out, we were offered several easy methods of correcting the Electoral Register.
Come polling day, we will receive a card through the post for everyone on the Register at our address, which we take with us to the polling station.

[skuthorp]

Well……….. ages ago Donn told me America was not a democracy………………….. And he of course was correct, it was never designed to be one from the beginning. Heaven forbid that anyone other than the 'proper class of person' should become Pres……….
Well, we know how that turned out eh?

[CWSmith]

In NH you can change party affiliation on the way in to vote and change it back on the way out. In effect, you can vote in whichever party election you want.

This year across the USA, Democrats supporting and voting for the most objectionable Republican on the ballot is inflaming long-standing Republican voters. I'm hoping it doesn't come back and bite us in the butt.

[Gerarddm]

IIRC, the voter party ID is to determine who can vote in that party's primary. Of course, in the general election you vote for whoever you want.

[Dan McCosh]

Identifying your party in the primary vote is intended to prevent the opposing party from voting in a candidate that it perceives as the weakest in the general election. Whether this works or not is another issue.

[The Ranger]

One can't choose a party when one registers in Minnesota but you can only vote by party in the primaries.

Vote early, vote often!

[David W Pratt]

One can't choose a party when one registers in Minnesota but you can only vote by party in the primaries.

Vote early, vote often!

Count early, and often!

[Ian McColgin]

Unlike parliamentary democracies with their ideological political parties, the US system at its best favors less ideologically strident parties that are really coalitions of local vote getting coalitions. Even at times when a great issue like slavery divided the nation, other party differences were not so noticeable. That's why the Nixon-Kennedy debates were on silly non-issues like Quemoy/Matsu. The Reagan/Gingrich revolutions were really bad for us.

Today the Republican party is one hopes a short lived experiment while the Democrats are the party of diversity: ideological and economic and racial.

[John Smith]

Our system is flawed. People/corporations with a lot of money can buy politicians. May be some can't be bought, but I suspect they're in the minority.

THAT SAID, today's GOP has gone off the rails. Totally.

[Nicholas Carey]

How so? I thought it was just the opposite. The system had been set up without the expectation that there would be any political parties. Was there a law that codified a two party system? I must have missed it..

It's baked into law in a myriad of little ways.

The fact that most states have a Democratic primary ballot, a Republican ballot, and then ... an "everything else" ballot.

The fact that the ballots even show party affiliation. It's a person that's running for office, not a political party.

The fact that the Congress is seated by party and not by state.

The fact that congressional committees must have equal representation from the Ds and the Rs.

The fact that there are states where you can go into a voting booth and vote straight party line my making a single choice . . . So long as it's the Democratic or Republican Party line you're talking about.

There's lots of this sort of stuff that bakes it in and makes it nearly impossible for a 3rd party to make serious inroads into office.

It is composed of lots of small structural impediments to 3rd-party success, in much the same way that structural racism inhibits the success of brown-skinned people.