By Ernie Geigenmiller
In years past, the state of Washington has held both a caucus for each political party and a primary during the same election season.
That changed last year with the passage of SB5119, which cancels the 2012 presidential primary by amending RCW 29A.56.020, which was signed into law by Governor Chris Gregoire on May 13, 2011. In the last two election cycles, the Washington Democrats (2004 and 2008) nominated by caucus while the Washington Republicans nominated by caucus in 2004 and by both caucus and primary in 2008.
It’s a temporary law, says the Governor’s office, because it expires in 2013, which opens the door to another presidential primary in 2016. The reason is to save the state money. The primary system costs the taxpayer money to operate. Political parties pay for the caucus system.
So, Democrats and Republicans, if you’re expecting a primary ballot this election season, don’t hold your breath. You won’t be receiving one.
So, what does a civic-minded citizen do now? You go to caucus.
What’s that? Put simply, it’s the most grass-roots you can get in American politics.
Todd Galbraith, who recently participated in a Minnesota caucus, says it’s chaotic and can be laden with fraud, but is also a lot of fun, if done correctly.
“I went to cast my vote for Mitt Romney, but his name was off the ballot,” he said. “I had to request multiple times for a correct ballot until I was given one.”
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, and is commonly used in the United States and Canada. Each major political party, typically Democrats and Republicans, hold their own caucus on a separate date.
A caucus is a cluster of precincts in a geographical area. For example, in Camas there are 23 precincts that comprise the 15th & 18th Legislative districts. Each precinct has a Precinct Committee Officer (PCO) who operates their section at the caucus. If a PCO has an inclination to one candidate, he or she will organize their precinct to get the most supporters for that particular candidate.
It’s about organization. Supporters of a particular candidate can overwhelm a caucus.
Precinct members cluster in groups for their preferred candidate and a spokesman for each candidate makes his case and tries to persuade fellow precinct caucus voters. At the end of debate, each member in attendance casts his or her ballot for a chosen candidate. The ballots from each precinct are tallied and given to the caucus coordinator, who tallies all precincts.
Each precinct caucus chooses the precinct’s delegates (PCO is an automatic delegate) to the County Convention or Legislative District Caucuses [based on Washington State Republican Party rules 14, 15, 16]. The County Conventions will, in turn, choose delegates to the State Convention. The delegates chosen at state go onto the National Convention bound to support a particular candidate.
The Washington Democrats have similar system, but they are running on a different set of dates.
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| Congressman Ron Paul (R-Texas) took his presidential campaign to Vancouver on Feb. 16. |
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| Josh Romney poses with Kim Jaehee Rancourt and her family at the Heathman Lodge in Vancouver on Feb. 20. He is acting as a surrogate for his father, presidential candidate, Gov. Mitt Romney. |
“On the Republican side, I think Mitt Romney and Ron Paul have the best get-out-the-vote drives,” says Camas resident Susie Huckvale.
“It is grassroots politics at its best,” said Brandon Vick, Clark County Republican Chair expecting a higher-than average turnout at the Caucuses this year.
This year, Republicans will hold their caucus on Saturday, March 3.
Democrats will hold their caucus on Sunday, April 15, from 12:30-4 pm and exact locations have not been confirmed.
This cycle, Washington has a real say in the partisan battles. By April 2008, the GOP had already decided on John McCain, and the Democrats hadn’t had their caucus yet.
Republican Party Caucuses meet in each precinct at 10 am on Saturday, March 3, with doors opening at 9 am. Participants are required to sign a form stating they are Republicans and must confirm their address. Clark County is divided into 194 voting precincts, ranging in size from 2035 registered voters to 85. Registered voters who consider themselves Republicans will attend Precinct Caucus Clusters.
They’re “clustered” rather than having a meeting place for each precinct, with 11 to 31 Precincts meeting in ten locations. There is no cost to participate.
Republicans who live in Camas will caucus at Camas High School, in the Commons area. The address is 26900 SE 15th, in Camas, and includes the following precincts: 606, 625, 900, 905, 910, 913, 914, 917, 920, 925, 930, 935, 940, 947, 950, 960, 961, 962, 963, 964, 965, 966, and 985.
Basically, if you live in Camas, go to Camas High School to caucus. If unsure of your precinct, it’s on your voter registration card. There will also be a map at the caucus.
The March 3rd caucus is the reason why presidential candidate Ron Paul attended a rally in downtown Vancouver last Thursday at the Vancouver Hilton, and Josh Romney, the son of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, spent time in Vancouver on February 20.
Ron Paul’s rally had an estimated 1,500 in attendance.
“I’m supporting Ron Paul because I am ready for someone who takes the Constitution seriously and has a record to back it up,” said Camas resident Brian Kashas. “I think the Executive has too much power. I want an end to the interventionist foreign policy that we can’t afford and wins us no friends. He’s [Ron Paul] the only one talking about the role of the Federal Reserve system in funding the deficits and creating the booms and busts through fractional reserve lending- and wants to end this corrupt system by returning to sound money as required by the Constitution. It’s time to live within our means and get back to a principled government that stays within the limits imposed upon it.”
The younger Romney is acting as a campaign surrogate for his father by traveling through Washington and Alaska this week.
“My dad tackles things head on,” said Romney, who isn’t an official member of the campaign. “And he has more energy than anyone I know. We always have to get advance guys because Dad wears them out all the time. And he really has what it takes to turn this nation around.”
Romney rallied the supporters to do phone banking, take 10 people apiece to the March 3 caucus and to come visit with his father on March 1 as he campaigns in Washington.
“I also encourage you to respect our opponents,” said Romney. “We have disagreements but we need to be respectful.”
Romney spent about 90 minutes with the crowd addressing questions, shaking hands and watching a family sing.
The Rick Santorum campaign said their candidate will come to Washington next week and to stay tuned for upcoming announcements. The Newt Gingrich campaign hasn’t announced their intentions.
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