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Strengths And Weaknesses Of Presidential Candidates

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The Strengths and Weaknesses of the System of Choosing Presidential Candidates

It seems reasonable to conjecture that the Achilles' heel of the modern presidency is one of recruitment. The long-winded delegate nomination process could in theory be replaced by a daylong direct election of presidential candidates. Instead, tradition dictates that the presidential race is drawn out quadrennially over the pre-primary, primary, Party Convention and campaign seasons. All four phases influence the outcome of candidate selection and much also depends on campaign finance, the role of the media and the nominees themselves.

Although the process is considered a "complex, drawn-out affair" in the eyes of …show more content…

In Caucuses, the power to select delegates, who are sent to nominate presidential candidates at the National Party Convention, rests with Party activists who meet first at a local, then county and finally at a state level to make their choices. The caucus system propounds the strength of the Party elite who have an overriding influence as to who is chosen. As Ragsdale observed (1993, p.95), the system tended to be dominated and controlled by party bosses, as "deals were cut in smoke-filled rooms," rather than by ordinary rank-and-file members. This was far from democratic, and since the controversy surrounding Humphrey's nomination for the Democratic Party in 1968, the McGovern-Fraser Commission established reforms which saw the advent of the 'Media Primary.' Since 1972, this procedure has become the system with gravitas: 77% of the votes cast by Republican delegates in 1988 came from those selected by primaries. These state-wide intra-party elections mean that any supporters can vote for a nominee to send to the National Convention and although these elected delegates still formally select the presidential candidate, it is rarely more than a ratification of the preferences expressed by ordinary voters. This encouraged a higher level of political participation, as voters could feel a part of the decision making process. Some primaries, such as Michigan State, saw a significantly

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