Monday, February 26, 2007

Presidential Primary Calendar

Political parties pick their candidates through a screwy delegate system that includes proportional representation based on the number of party voters in a district, primary elections, and caucuses. But here's my proposal for an updated primary calendar simplified as if parties picked candidates the same way the Electoral College picks presidents. This model of "1/8-1, 1/4-1, 1/2-1, all" cumulative progression could be extended to the delegate system.



The goals I used were to break up the calendar so candidates could get to as many states to campaign in person as possible, to give small states a head start, but to not settle the races before all states got a chance to vote.



The last goal means that with 538 total electoral votes, 270 are needed to win a majority.






First start with small states in the Northeast and West to get to 51 electoral votes (about 1/8 of total votes).




















RegionStateElectoral Votes
NortheastVermont3
NortheastRhode Island4
NortheastNew Hampshire4
NortheastMaine4
NortheastDelaware3
NortheastDC3
NortheastConnecticut7
WestWyoming3
WestSouth Dakota3
WestNorth Dakota3
WestMontana3
WestIdaho4
WestHawaii4
WestAlaska3
Total1451



Then go to more small states in the Midwest, South, and West to add 80 more votes to get to 131 total electoral votes (about 1/4 of total votes).



















RegionStateElectoral Votes
MidwestWest Virginia5
MidwestOklahoma7
MidwestKentucky8
MidwestKansas6
MidwestIowa7
SouthSouth Carolina8
SouthMississippi6
SouthArkansas6
WestUtah5
WestOregon7
WestNew Mexico5
WestNevada5
WestNebraska5
Total1380



Then continue with mid-size states to add 136 more votes to get to 267 total electoral votes (just under 1/2 of total votes):



















RegionStateElectoral Votes
MidwestWisconsin10
MidwestTennessee11
MidwestMissouri11
MidwestMinnesota10
MidwestIndiana11
NortheastMassachusetts12
NortheastMaryland10
SouthVirginia13
SouthLouisiana9
SouthAlabama9
WestWashington11
WestColorado9
WestArizona10
Total13136



Then finish in one big bang to allocate the last 271 needed electoral votes and pick the winner:

















RegionStateElectoral Votes
MidwestOhio20
MidwestMichigan17
MidwestIllinois21
NortheastPennsylvania21
NortheastNew York31
NortheastNew Jersey15
SouthTexas34
SouthNorth Carolina15
SouthGeorgia15
SouthFlorida27
WestCalifornia55
Total11271

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