Public Opinion: Vaulting over Political Polls

A Texas political scientist is creating a new form of voter sampling, with results to appear on PBS nationwide

Since the turmoil of the 1968 Democratic Convention, American democracy has been stymied by what should be a simple question: What is the fairest way to nominate candidates for President?

Nearly a quarter-century of well-intentioned reforms have demonstrated the law of unintended consequences. Until 1968, party leaders controlled the process, spicing up their back-room bargaining with a handful of hotly contested presidential primaries. This elitist tradition has been replaced in both parties by the shallowest form of mass democracy: a gauntlet of party primaries (36 states in 1988) that give an almost unbeatable edge to the candidate who can raise the...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!