[GPSCC-chat] Fwd: Prop 14 (Top Two) forum in Santa Clara on Tuesday, Marc...

[spencerg]

Hi, Cameron:


       Yes, that was what I was looking for.  Thanks.


       That raises another question:  What's the difference between this 
Prop 14 system and the general / runoff system used in many other 
countries where third parties thrive?


       Best Wishes,
       Spencer


On 3/23/2010 5:02 PM, Cameron L. Spitzer wrote:
> I suspect Spencer was looking for some history to complement
> our already plausible conclusions about the intent and
> effect of top-two.  Not dismissing our reasoning.
>
> We now have per-party-primaries, which the parties can open if
> they choose, followed by a general election.
>
> Top-two replaces that system.  The new system has no
> per-party-primaries, a mid-year general election, and a runoff
> in the fall.  Without per-party-primaries, party affiliation
> has no legal meaning.
>
> It's easy to be confused by funny terms like "open primary."
> When candidates from all parties run against one another, that's
> not a primary, it's a general election.
>
> Several states already do that, all that's different is the
> schedule.  So the "evidence" Spencer wants can be found in
> the experience in those states.  Georgia, Virginia,
> Washington.  Washington had a sort of Nader campaign club
> in 2000, which disappeared shortly after that election,
> but never got a Green Party together.  Georgia was one of
> the first US states that organized a Green political club,
> and it even formed locals in the larger counties, but never
> reached a thousand members, despite two decades of relatively
> competent organizing effort.  Virginia got started later
> but the story's the same.  You could run down the chart
> in _Ballot Access News_ and catch the rest.  States with
> "open primaries" or no party-voter affiliation
> don't grow Green Parties.  The correlation is just
> about absolute.  The only thing missing is an experiment
> where a state takes away party-voter affiliation that it
> used to have.
>
>
> -Cameron
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> sosfbay-discuss mailing list
> sosfbay-discuss at cagreens.org
> http://lists.cagreens.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sosfbay-discuss
>    
-- 
Spencer Graves, PE, PhD
President and Chief Operating Officer
Structure Inspection and Monitoring, Inc.
751 Emerson Ct.
San José, CA 95126
ph:  408-655-4567