Seth Masket is a political scientist who has studied polarization and partisanship in state government for many years. Here is a new column by Masket about how Califoria’s top-two primary worked in practice last year. As he notes, it has increased the power of the major party organizations to determine who is permitted to run in November.
During May, the city of Vallejo, California, held an advisory election, asking voters to choose what the city should spend part of its sales tax income. The ballot listed 33 possible uses for the money, and asked voters to choose the 12 that they favor. See this story. Only 4,000 voters participated, even though the special rules for this non-binding election permitted anyone age 16 and over to vote. Thanks to AroundtheCapitol for the link.
Two New York city councilmembers, Brad Lander and Gale Brewer, are introducing a proposed charter amendment for New York city Mayoral elections. It would provide for Ranked Choice Voting in partisan primaries for Mayor. See this story. Thanks to Michael Drucker for the news. The proposal, even if enacted, would not be in effect until 2017.
On June 12, a U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., struck down the law that says, “It is unlawful to parade, stand, or move in procession or assemblages in the U.S. Supreme Court building or grounds, or to display in the Building and grounds a flag, banner, or device designed or adapted to bring into public notice a party, organization, or movement.” See this story. The case is Hodge v Talkin. Thanks to HowAppealing for this news.
The Guardian has this column which implies that the leading opponents of intrusive government in the United States are the libertarian wing of the Republican Party, plus the Libertarian Party. The Guardian is the newspaper that, in the entire world, was the first to report on Edward Snowden.
