George Skelton, veteran politics reporter for the Los Angeles Times, here bemoans the fact that young people, especially Hispanics and blacks, have far lower turnout rates nowadays in midterm years than in the past. Skelton has been vociferously in favor of the top-two system in California, ever since it was first proposed in 2004.
He does not mention the idea that top-two is one reason why California midterm elections are so boring. In 2014, two very interesting gubernatorial candidates filed, but were kept off the general election ballot because of the top-two system. One was Green Party member Luis Rodriguez, who had gone from being a gang member and drug addict, to one of California’s most celebrated contemporary writers. During 2014 he was poet laurate of Los Angeles. He has published 15 books and won many literary and civic awards.
The other was Cindy Sheehan, famous for having set up “Camp Casey” outside President George W. Bush’s Crawford, Texas, summer white house. She also filed, as a Peace & Freedom Party member, but like Rodriguez, was kept out of the general election campaign season.
Someone whose grandfather was governor in the 50s and 60s, and whose father was governor in the 70s and 80s, wasn’t compelling? Nor a Hindu Kashmiri from Akron?
Look at the results. California turnout rate declined more between November 2010 and November 2014 than any other state. California is the only state in which the turnout rate in November 2014 was less than 70% of the turnout rate of November 2010. This uses Professor Michael McDonald’s turnout data.
Top One would cure all this dissension! 😉
(1) No senate race in 2014. In 2010 you had Carly “Killer Sheep” Fiorina vs. Empress Norton Boxer
(2) The gubernatorial race was boring compared to 2010 (Meg-a-Million Whitman vs. the reincarnation of Jerry Brown)
Turnout for the gubernatorial election with no senate election has been declining for decades.
1966: 79.20%
1978: 70.41% (-8.79%)
1990: 58.61% (-11.80%)
2002: 50.57% (-8.04%)
2014: 42.20% (-8.37%)
The last decline was the second smallest.
2018 will see an increase with a open governors race, and a potentially open senate race if Feinstein retires at 85.
In 2014, these states also didn’t have US Senate elections: Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin. Under your theory their turnout should have dropped drastically also. And why do you think Neel Kashkari (Jerry Brown’s opponent in 2014) wasn’t an interesting person?
Why did you have to note who Neel Kashkari was? Did he have Whitman’s advertising budget?
Arizona’s turnout was 47.5% in 2014, down from 55.6% in 2010, and 60.5% in 2006.
The USA is now a de facto lawless Prez tyranny —
since the Congress and SCOTUS are paralyzed.
i.e. States are de facto dead – mere pass thru things for Fed cash.