What I never knew about our political system could fill a book, but after today that book would be one chapter shorter. Mark and I were asked to be delegates for our precinct in Tulsa to the Republican Convention. So, we signed up. We didn't really know what a "delegate" was, and no one could really tell me. I was hearing all about "delegate votes" and "super delegates" on the news, but it was clear that these delegates were governors, congressmen, and, well, probably not me. Here's what I learned today that if you don't know yet, you really should pay attention to.
Jim Inhofe, #1 conservative Senator in the US Senate, spoke at the Convention. He said something I had never heard before. The US is the only nation in the world whose political system begins in the living rooms of voters and leads up to a national convention. (For those who are interested, this is a unique aspect of our governing political system, our Republic. A Republic differs from a Democracy in an important way, instead of being ruled by popular opinion, mob-mentality, or the infamous "popular vote," a Republic elects select groups of people to govern; create, interpret and enforce laws; and help elect officials.) The process has 4 levels: The "living room caucus" is more commonly known as a precinct caucus. This is simply a group of people in your neighborhood that meet (usually in someone's home) in early January. ANY registered voter in the precinct can attend. To find your precinct number look on your voter's identification card just above the address of your polling place. To find your precinct chairman (or become one if there isn't one already) and the location of meetings contact your county election board and tell them your precinct number. Each precinct has a certain number of delegates it elects to send to the County Convention, it may be as few as 3 or it may be as many as 20 (maybe more, I don't know for certain). Sadly, most of those delegate seats are left empty at many conventions. Why? Probably because most of you, like me, had no idea the seats were open to us in the first place! So, chances are, if you want to be a precinct delegate, you can. Once elected as a precinct delegate (elected being a loose term for "you show up to the precinct caucus, you can be one"), you are qualified to attend the District and State Conventions, all you have to do is sign up for them before the deadline and get there (sometimes they are in other cities). At these conventions delegates are elected to go to the National Convention (Republicans' in Minnesota, Democrat's in Colorado). Again, you have to get yourself there, everyone involved in the party is a volunteer, no one's way is paid. This is where the Electoral College is elected, the party's official candidate is chosen, and really the only convention that gets big news coverage. Why such a long, complicated process? Well, it absolutely assures that the most active, concerned, and passionate members of the party get to the convention to represent us. For Republicans, the most conservative, and for Democrats, the most liberal. The wishy-washy, middle of the line guys are few and far between, and this helps define the party's ideals.
So, what did we do at the Tulsa County Republican Convention today? We (along with about 350 other delegates out of the 735 qualified delegates that could have attended) had state senators and representatives introduced to us, met other people in the party, and voted for the official platform of the Tulsa Republican Party. I know it may not sound like much, but it was kind of exciting, and it totally reaffirmed my choice of political party. I'm proud to be a Republican, and if you read the platform we helped ratify today, I think you will understand why.
Jim Inhofe, #1 conservative Senator in the US Senate, spoke at the Convention. He said something I had never heard before. The US is the only nation in the world whose political system begins in the living rooms of voters and leads up to a national convention. (For those who are interested, this is a unique aspect of our governing political system, our Republic. A Republic differs from a Democracy in an important way, instead of being ruled by popular opinion, mob-mentality, or the infamous "popular vote," a Republic elects select groups of people to govern; create, interpret and enforce laws; and help elect officials.) The process has 4 levels: The "living room caucus" is more commonly known as a precinct caucus. This is simply a group of people in your neighborhood that meet (usually in someone's home) in early January. ANY registered voter in the precinct can attend. To find your precinct number look on your voter's identification card just above the address of your polling place. To find your precinct chairman (or become one if there isn't one already) and the location of meetings contact your county election board and tell them your precinct number. Each precinct has a certain number of delegates it elects to send to the County Convention, it may be as few as 3 or it may be as many as 20 (maybe more, I don't know for certain). Sadly, most of those delegate seats are left empty at many conventions. Why? Probably because most of you, like me, had no idea the seats were open to us in the first place! So, chances are, if you want to be a precinct delegate, you can. Once elected as a precinct delegate (elected being a loose term for "you show up to the precinct caucus, you can be one"), you are qualified to attend the District and State Conventions, all you have to do is sign up for them before the deadline and get there (sometimes they are in other cities). At these conventions delegates are elected to go to the National Convention (Republicans' in Minnesota, Democrat's in Colorado). Again, you have to get yourself there, everyone involved in the party is a volunteer, no one's way is paid. This is where the Electoral College is elected, the party's official candidate is chosen, and really the only convention that gets big news coverage. Why such a long, complicated process? Well, it absolutely assures that the most active, concerned, and passionate members of the party get to the convention to represent us. For Republicans, the most conservative, and for Democrats, the most liberal. The wishy-washy, middle of the line guys are few and far between, and this helps define the party's ideals.
So, what did we do at the Tulsa County Republican Convention today? We (along with about 350 other delegates out of the 735 qualified delegates that could have attended) had state senators and representatives introduced to us, met other people in the party, and voted for the official platform of the Tulsa Republican Party. I know it may not sound like much, but it was kind of exciting, and it totally reaffirmed my choice of political party. I'm proud to be a Republican, and if you read the platform we helped ratify today, I think you will understand why.
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