Re: [OT] Liberal party considering making it easier to oust their leader

The Horny Goat <lcraver@home.ca> wrote:

. . .

The major difference between Canada and the US is that you do actually
have to join your chosen party to vote - there's no such thing as a
'registered Democrat' or 'registered GOP'. . . .

The United States does not have universal election law per federalism.

Many US states have never had party registration through voter
registration. My state has never had party registration. What typically
happens is a voter declares his party to participate in a primary. Even
in a state with party registration, there can be a method of changing
registration to participate in a primary or one may participate in a
primary without regard to party registration. And then we have a handful
of states, like Wisconsin, in which the voter is handed a ballot of
candidates of all parties with primaries and chooses which primary to
participate in on an office-by-office basis.

In states that still use caucuses for specific nominations like township
government, participation is usually showing up or signing a form to
participate in that party's caucus.

A presidential nominating caucus is a hybrid of caucus and convention,
as delegates are selected at a caucus to attend a convention; the caucus
makes no nomination.

And then we have a number of states -- many southern states and
California -- that abolished primaries for many or all offices.

City of Chicago doesn't have a primary election. Officially candidates
are nonpartisan. If they receive a majority vote in the first round,
they are elected. Otherwise it's top two in the second round. Both Lori
Lightfoot and Brandon Johnson were leading candidates with small
pluralities in the first round. Lightfoot had the plurality with 1/6 of
the vote, and in re-election, came in third. Johnson didn't do much
better. The problem with top two voting is the majority is forced and
not true public support which is part of the reason why both were weak
mayors.

Even Rahm barely campaigned for re-election, deluding himself into
believing he was popular, and was forced into the second round as he was
just under a majority in the first round.

This law was changed to appease the Republican Party.