Thursday, June 14, 2018

Maine Voters Lift Up Democracy then Democratic Party Pulls It Down


Jackie Salit is a highly respected Political Innovator and Advocate for the Rights of Independent Voters. Jackie is the President of IndependentVoting.org, the Country’s Leading Strategy and Organizing Center for independents, with Chapters in 40 States. Since 2005 she has hosted a Bi-Annual National Conference for independents in New York City. Jackie is also one of my Political Mentors.

A wise man once said, “Those who make the rules, rule.” Today, we wonder whether the current rules of voting and governing can deliver any kind of progress.

In 2016, Maine voters enacted a rules change that established Ranked Choice Voting as the statewide method for casting ballots. When the voters get to make the decision, the rules become fairer. When the parties make the decision, it goes the other way.

Last week, the Democratic National Committee Rules and Bylaws Committee took its own bull by the horns and adopted a new rule for presidential candidates: a loyalty oath. The new rule states: “At the time a presidential candidate announces their candidacy publicly, they must publicly affirm that they are a Democrat.”

Furthermore, any candidate must “run and serve as a member of the Democratic Party.” Translation: the DNC believes it is time to tighten the party’s grip on its presidential nominating process in preparation for 2020.


CLICK HERE to read Jackie's article from Electoral Reform, in the June 13th, 2018, posted in The Independent Voter Network (IVN.us).










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1 comment:

richardwinger said...

"Loyalty oath" is a misleading term to apply to this story. Traditionally, "loyalty oath" is a promise to vote for a party nominee in the general election. That is not what this story is about. This story is about a proposed rule that the Democratic Party will not nominate anyone for president or vice-president who isn't a Democrat. That is a different topic. There really is no common term for that.