Nominating Candidates Chp. 16 Section 3 Pg. 464

How to get a nomination Candidates are nominated in 4 ways: 1. caucus 2. nominating convention 3. primary election 4. petition

Caucuses Private meetings of party leaders to choose candidates for office. Was criticized as being undemocratic because most people had no say in selecting the candidates Nineteen states still use caucuses today.

Nominating Conventions An official public meeting of a party to choose candidates for office. Party bosses took control so people turned to primaries.

Primary Elections Method most commonly used today. Hold a direct primary where an election is held in which party members select people to run in the general election. Two types of primaries Open – all voters may participate Closed – only party members can vote If no one gets a plurality of votes a run off primary is held.

Petition A person announces his candidacy and files petitions that a specified number of voters have signed in order to be placed on the ballot. Some states require all candidates to file petitions.

Presidential Nominations Task of the delegates is at convention is to select a ticket Candidates for president and vice president Winner take all primaries– the person getting the most votes gets all the delegates Proportional representation – delegates must represent candidates in proportion to the votes received.

Platforms Another task of the convention delegates is to choose a platform committee. Platform committee sets the platform that the candidates will support Platform is a statement of its principles, beliefs and positions on vital issues

Vice Presidential Candidate Picking a vice president normally happens on the last day of the convention Usually the Presidential candidate chooses a running mate and the convention nominates him. Balance the ticket – sometimes a candidate is chosen to even out the personal, political and geographic background of the Presidential candidate in order to attractive a wider number of voters.