Convention Delegates  Proportional Allocation: Candidates receive a percentage of delegates based on the percent of the vote they receive  This is how the Democratic Party awards convention delegates

Convention Delegates  Winner-Take-All Allocation: Candidate who wins the primary wins ALL the delegates  The Republican Party traditionally awards delegates in this manner

Simple Math ProportionalWinner-Take-All  Maryland has 100 delegates at stake.  Candidate A wins 55% of the vote and gets 55 delegates.  Candidate B wins 40% of the vote and wins 40 delegates  This method causes primaries to last longer and allows more people to vote  Maryland has 100 Delegates at stake.  Candidate A wins by one vote  Candidate A gets ALL THE DELEGATES  This method tends to end primaries quicker

Toward the Convention  Once a candidate has a majority of the convention delegates they become the presumptive nominee and starts planning their convention

Choosing a Running Mate  In the spring or summer before the election, the presumptive nominee picks their running mate: their vice- president

Choosing a Running Mate  LOTS of strategy goes into this pick.  A GOOD running mate will:  BALANCE THE TICKET  (OLD AND YOUNG, GEOGRAPHY, IDEOLOGY)  OR TARGET A SPECIFIC STATE OR GROUP OF VOTERS  Sometimes it works, and sometimes…

Planning the Convention  The political party that is defending the White House always goes last.  This is a huge advantage.  The host city is chosen 1-2 years beforehand.  2012: Republican National Convention – Tampa, FL  2012: Democratic National Convention – Charlotte, NC  The host city is picked for the same reasons as a good running mate.

The National Convention  Monday: Introduce You to America  Spouse, significant other, best friends will give speeches introducing you to the United States  Tuesday: Introduce the Party Platform  Platform: The set of ideas you believe in as a candidate  Keynote Address: Delivered by a future star of your party defending the platform

The National Convention  Wednesday: The Nomination  Roll Call of States: State delegates announce their choices of nominee for president and vice- president  Running Mate delivers acceptance speech  Thursday: Accepting the Nomination  The nominee delivers their acceptance speech

Ready for Primetime  The 2 keynote addresses, the vice- presidential nominee’s speech, and the acceptance speech are all delivered on primetime, live television.  This is a great way to introduce yourself to voters who will now begin paying attention in detail.  Anticipate delivering your speech before a crowd of 40,000 to 50,000 people (Depending on the arena.)  Anticipate a television audience of up to 40 Million people!