The Texas Democratic Party is circulating a straw poll this week which will be considered at the SDEC meeting in San Antonio next weekend. They intend to ask the national Democratic Party for an exemption (again) to allow Texas to deviate from the National Democratic Party Rules and continue with the discriminatory Texas 2-step. They intend to continue basing the number of delegates apportioned to each precinct for the 2016 Presidential Year Texas Democratic Senatorial and State Convention upon a percentage of the votes cast in the 2014 Gov's election.
The Straw Poll gives folks opportunity to state whether you prefer doing away with alternates altogether, doing away with at large alternates, changing the percentage of votes per delegate from the current 300 or making it a delegate for every 275. However, they are not asking Texas Democrats whether we think basing the Delegate selection in a Presidential Election year upon the turn-out in a Gov's election year is a stupid idea or not. IT IS A STUPID IDEA. It is discriminatory to many of Texas's voters and to the people who run for president. It also skews the electoral college by having one of our nation's largest states base the decision on which candidate gets the vote upon an election other than the Presidential Election!
Here is some of the ways it is discriminatory:
The Texas 2 step gives 25% of the selection of delegates to the senatorial convention to those who appear in person at the precinct conventions and 75% to the votes cast in the Democratic Primary. The delegates sing with a Presidential preference and select delegates to the State and ultimately to the National Convention. When we vote at the polls we are voting for DELEGATES to SELECT our PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE. It is important (to me at least) that we have a fair, transparent, honest process for selecting the delegates who ultimately select the national delegates who ultimately nominate the party's Presidential nominee.
If a Texas voter is home bound, or has a job which does not allow him or her to appear in person at the precinct convention, their vote only counts 75% toward selecting the delegates to the senatorial convention. Those who participate in both get the full 100%. At least on the surface, that is how it appears. The Texas 2-step further complicates the process by basing the number of delegates to a percentage per precinct based on the number of votes cast in the previous Gov's election. Now what happened in the Gov's election really shouldn't have anything to do with what Presidential Candidate Texans select as the Presidential Nominee, but there are precincts which are historically heavy Democratic voting precincts and leaders in those precincts have more clout with the Party leaders and do not want to change it. They don't seem to care if our active-duty military which cannot vote in person at the Precinct conventions get shafted and only get a 75% say in selecting their Commander-in-Chief. They don't seem to think it is important enough for our nurses and doctors and first responders who work shifts which conflict with precinct conventions to have an opportunity to voice their choice for our nation's next president and have 100% say along with those who attend precinct conventions. They don't seem to care that there is no method in Texas for home bound, or those who must work (or in my precinct) those who do not have transportation to the precinct conventions) to get their full 100% say.
Then when you add in the "based on the previous vote per precinct in the Gov's election) to determine the number of delegates it grows even more discriminatory and in my opinion actually STUPID. It's manipulative. We want people to come to the party, learn about the process, participate. When we have contested presidential election, many do. And as they learn how warped the process is, how it reaches back to a previous election and discriminates against the candidates who are actually running for President by not selecting the delegates based on the NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO VOTED FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES but on the number who voted in a totally different race in a totally different year, a significant number who became active get turned off and never participate in the Democratic Party again. They say: "We agree with the issues but don't like politics."
I urge you to respond to the Straw Poll. Go a step farther and demand that the Texas Democratic party NOT apply for an exemption from the National Party to allow Texas to continue with the Texas 2 step. Demand that the Texas Democratic Party base the selection of delegates to the Senatorial/State and National Conventions upon the number of votes cast in the PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION per candidate instead of upon the number of votes cast in the previous GOVERNOR's ELECTION. Demand that the percentage of delegates to each convention be based upon one person one vote instead of a percentage of votes in the previous governor's election.
Then contact the National Democratic Party and demand that no exemption be given to the Texas Democratic Party to deviate from the Rules of the National Democratic Party in the way this state selects delegates and electors for our party's nominee for President of the United States.The Texas Democratic Party is circulating a straw poll this week which will be considered at the SDEC meeting in San Antonio next weekend. They intend to ask the national Democratic Party for an exemption (again) to allow Texas to deviate from the National Democratic Party Rules and continue with the discriminatory Texas 2-step. They intend to continue basing the number of delegates apportioned to each precinct for the 2016 Presidential Year Texas Democratic Senatorial and State Convention upon a percentage of the votes cast in the 2014 Gov''s election.
The Straw Poll gives folks opportunity to state whether you prefer doing away with alternates altogether, doing away with at large alternates, changing the percentage of votes per delegate from the current 300 or making it a delegate for every 275. However, they are not asking Texas Democrats whether we think basing the Delegate selection in a Presidential Election year upon the turn-out in a Gov's election year is a stupid idea or not. IT IS A STUPID IDEA. It is discriminatory to many of Texas's voters and to the people who run for president. It also skews the electoral college by having one of our nation's largest states base the decision on which candidate gets the vote upon an election other than the Presidential Election!
Here is some of the ways it is discriminatory:
The Texas 2 step gives 25% of the selection of delegates to the senatorial convention to those who appear in person at the precinct conventions and 75% to the votes cast in the Democratic Primary. The delegates sigfn with a Presidential preference and select delegates to the State and ultimately to the National Convention. When we vote at the polls we are voting for DELEGATES to SELECT our PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE. It is important (to me at least) that we have a fair, transparent, honest process for selecting the delegates who ultimately select the national delegates who ultimately nominate the party's Presidential nominee.
If a Texas voter is home bound,' or has a job which does not allow him or her to appear in person at the precinct convention, their vote only counts 75% toward selecting the delegates to the senatorial convention. Those who participate in both get the full 100%. At least on the surface, that is how it appears. The Texas 2-step further complicates the process by basing the number of delegates to a percentage per precinct based on the number of votes cast in the previous Gov's election. Now what happened in the Gov's election really shouldn't have anything to do with what Presidential Candidate Texans select as the Presidential Nominee, but there are precincts which are historically heavy Democratic voting precincts and leaders in those precincts have more clout with the Party leaders and do not want to change it. They don't seem to care if our active-duty military which cannot vote in person at the Precinct conventions get shafted and only get a 75% say in selecting their Commander-in-Chief. They don't seem to think it is important enough for our nurses and doctors and first responders who work shifts which conflict with precinct conventions to have an opportunity to voice their choice for our nation's next president and have 100% say along with those who attend precinct conventions. They don't seem to care that there is no method in Texas for home bound, or those who must work (or in my precinct) those who do not have transportation to the precinct conventions) to get their full 100% say.
Then when you add in the "based on the previous vote per precinct in the Gov's election) to determine the number of delegates it grows even more discriminatory and in my opinion actually STUPID. It's manipulative. We want people to come to the party, learn about the process, participate. When we have contested presidential election, many do. And as they learn how warped the process is, how it reaches back to a previous election and discriminates against the candidates who are actually running for President by not selecting the delegates based on the NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO VOTED FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES but on the number who voted in a totally different race in a totally different year, a significant number who became active get turned off and never participate in the Democratic Party again. They say: "We agree with the issues but don't like politics."
I urge you to respond to the Straw Poll. Go a step farther and demand that the Texas Democratic party NOT apply for an exemption from the National Party to allow Texas to continue with the Texas 2 step. Demand that the Texas Democratic Party base the selection of delegates to the Senatorial/State and National Conventions upon the number of votes cast in the PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION per candidate instead of upon the number of votes cast in the previous GOVERNOR's ELECTION. Demand that the percentage of delegates to each convention be based upon one person one vote instead of a percentage of votes in the previous governor's election.
Democrats, whereever you live in the USA, this impacts you. Contact the National Democratic Party and demand that no exemption be given to the Texas Democratic Party to deviate from the Rules of the National Democratic Party in the way this state selects delegates and electors for our party's nominee for President of the United States.