The 1988 Presidential Primary, Essay Example

Presidential primary elections in the United States were first tested in 1912 when the incumbent president, William Taft, was pitted against challengers Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt. Theodore was the favorite candidate, but because the “preferences” among the primaries were non-binding, the nomination went to Taft. The first successful primary was ‘The Super Tuesday’ (March 8, 1988). All the nine states in the south united hoping that the candidate selected by the Democrats would be in line with their interests. The main advantage of the presidential primaries in 1988 was that candidates had a chance to concentrate on the resources in each part of the country instead of conducting campaign in each state simultaneously.

From the election statistics in 1988, polling in presidential primaries is a more difficult and newer art as compared to general election campaign. It is more difficult since it involves a more complicated group of contests than in the general elections (Bartels and Broh 563). It is also newer because this system of contemporary presidential nomination, which is based on the performances of the candidates and decisive chains of weekly elections, has been implemented successfully for a period less than twenty years. It involves fewer voters, more candidates, a less-committed and less-knowledgeable public, and less-understood election rules as compared to general election.

Jesse Jackson became the first black candidate to win the 1988 nominations involving one of the major political parties (Bartels and Broh 563). However, his win increased complexity in the nomination in a primary season. Jackson generated an important new political state. As a result, he illuminated both the occasional and the standard operating sequences of the pollsters. He proved to the minority communities in the United States that each citizen had equal opportunity for party nominations. The presidential primary ensured that those nominated had the capacity to deliver since it was based on candidate’s performance.

Work cited

Bartels, Larry M., and Broh C. Anthony. A Review: The 1988 Presidential Primaries. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 53(4), pp. 563-589. 1989.