Cross-posted at the Centrist CoalitionOne thing I really appreciate on this blog is that I have rarely, if ever, read anyone suggesting a third-party solution to the political polarization hobbling in America today. As Brendan Nyhan regularly points out there is no hope for a third party to win an election in this country. State laws secure Republican and Democratic monopolization by forcing third parties to meet unfair criteria, gerrymandering ensures party control over districts, and no one could hope to muster the necessary campaign contributions to compete with the established Republican and Democratic fund-raising juggernauts. At best the most a third-party candidate can hope to do is siphon votes off the major-party candidate most similar to them, to the benefit of their ideological opponent.
But if the two-party stranglehold prevents us from even entertaining the possibility of a third option, how are we centrists to bring our government back to the ideal mean? I think Dr. David Brin has the answer, take the fight to the primaries. That is where our elections are really being decided. Why let the two parties decide our choices in November? Register with the party in power for your state, and vote for the centrist candidates. Even if they don’t win, it sends a message to the party about our discontent, and you can still vote the other way in the big one.
Now, having said that, it’s probably too late for most of us to try this tactic this year. I needed to register last week, but Dr. Brin has registered Republican in his state, and if we can spread the word about this tactic, it might garner enough mindshare for people to take notice in 2008. Who knows?
Posted by Ryan Somma at March 6, 2006 07:59 PM