Column by Adrian Kuzminski, April 20, 2018
Nation’s Two-Party
System Guarantees
‘The Iron Law Of Oligarchy’
Most voters enroll in one or the other major party, though the number of non-party enrollees has grown in recent years. In our area, and nationally, it’s very roughly one third Democrat, one third Republican, and one third non-partisan, or independent (small “i”). The two-party system goes back to the battles between Alexander Hamilton’s Federalists and Thomas Jefferson’s Republicans. The Jeffersonian Republicans have since morphed into the Democrats, and the Federalists into the Republicans. Unfortunately, these parties have become a big part of what’s wrong, rather than what’s right, with American politics. The two political parties – they are not mentioned in the Constitution – have a strangle-hold on the electoral process. It’s difficult, though not impossible, to get on the ballot without the approval of one or the other party. In the current race in the 19th CD, for instance, party enrollees need to collect only 1,250 signatures to get on the primary ballot. But if you run as an independent, you need 3,500 signatures. Party candidates have other advantages. They can go to their county party committees to pitch for support and recruit volunteers to circulate their petitions. The parties are also a source of money for candidates.
