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Primary Politics: Everything You Need to Know about How America Nominates Its Presidential Candidates
The 2016 presidential primaries are on the horizon and this new edition of Elaine Kamarck’s Primary Politics will be there to help make sense of them. Updated to include the 2012 election, it will once again be the guide to understanding the modern nominating system and some of its arcana, including the “robot rule.”
In Primary Politics , political insider Elaine Kamarck explains how the presidential nomination process became the often baffling system we have today. Her focus is the largely untold story of how presidential candidates since the early 1970s have sought to alter the rules in their favor and how their failures and successes have led to even more change. She describes how candidates have sought to manipulate the sequencing of primaries to their advantage and how Iowa and New Hampshire came to dominate the system. She analyzes the rules that are used to translate votes into delegates, paying special attention to the Democrats' twenty-year fight over proportional representation.
Drawing on meticulous research, interviews with key figures in both parties, and years of experience, this book explores one of the most important questions in American politics -- how we narrow the list of presidential candidates every four years.
In Primary Politics , political insider Elaine Kamarck explains how the presidential nomination process became the often baffling system we have today. Her focus is the largely untold story of how presidential candidates since the early 1970s have sought to alter the rules in their favor and how their failures and successes have led to even more change. She describes how candidates have sought to manipulate the sequencing of primaries to their advantage and how Iowa and New Hampshire came to dominate the system. She analyzes the rules that are used to translate votes into delegates, paying special attention to the Democrats' twenty-year fight over proportional representation.
Drawing on meticulous research, interviews with key figures in both parties, and years of experience, this book explores one of the most important questions in American politics -- how we narrow the list of presidential candidates every four years.
240 pages, Paperback
First published May 10, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
August 7, 2024
Meget saglig gennemgang
February 11, 2016
Great For Political Junkies! An in-depth view into our nation's crazy primary political process. There is an abundance of information in this volume. It is obvious that the author "knows her stuff". Unfortunately, it was too much information and minutiae for me to follow along well and digest. If you are really, really into the political process, I believe this would be a great book for you. For me, a interested layman into politics, it was a bit too much.
November 27, 2020
The book isn't for those looking for entry level into American politics. I did struggled trying to understand the books. However the content is very detailed. It did helped me understand why superdelegates exist and how the delegate choose the president. However, if one did not have necessary basic level knowledge on basic structure of American politics, we need to shut the books and searched for videos on it before re-reading the book. As I did.
Even after that, I barely able to understand American political structure. Furthermore i am plagued with more confusion on state legislature and congressional legislation and then whether or not republican primary and democratic primary is govern by the same legislation. What is exactly winnogard commission...is it a commission only to govern democrat nomination.
Even after that, I barely able to understand American political structure. Furthermore i am plagued with more confusion on state legislature and congressional legislation and then whether or not republican primary and democratic primary is govern by the same legislation. What is exactly winnogard commission...is it a commission only to govern democrat nomination.
May 2, 2017
Though there was some repetitiveness, Kamarck made a difficult topic understandable and interesting.
January 18, 2021
To love this book is to love the minutiae of nomination procedure and strategy.
January 14, 2023
VERY inside baseball. If you're into that sort of thing, highly recommend.
January 19, 2015
The full title is Primary Politics: How Presidential Candidates Have Shaped the Modern Nominating System, and the book fully delivers what the title promises. Elaine C. Kamarck has served both the DNC and the Clinton White House, as well as the Gore Campaign. She brings an insider’s view to the table.
Kamarck begins by recounting how—and why—the national political party machinery sought to retain control over the presidential nomination process. A populist reform movement began to grow in the late sixties whose vision was to place control of the nominations in the hands of the average voter.
Using the presidential nominations from 1968 to 2008, she traces how the Democratic Party in particular moved from caucuses (which favored party control) and winner-take-all primaries (which allowed weak candidates with early wins to gain more momentum than they should) to the proportional representation (which gives the voter-on-the-street control) reflected in the modern Democratic nomination process.
Kamarck shows that presidential candidates who don’t focus on the early voting states do poorly, and further, that campaigners who don’t shift their focus from winning votes to winning delegates in the second half of the campaign likewise fail to make the cut.
The last part of the book is devoted to discussing the whys and wherefores of uncommitted superdelegates, and whether or not party conventions really matter anymore. Her final chapter is particularly strong, as she talks about possible reforms being considered after the 2008 conventions.
I read the book as part of the research for my upcoming novel, The Candidate. It was an eye-opener to the back room machinations of both political parties, as well as a good primer on basic campaign strategy to capture the nomination of one of the major parties. I recommend the book if you are a political junkie looking for in-depth, behind-the-scenes problems and tactics of a race to win the presidential nomination.
Kamarck begins by recounting how—and why—the national political party machinery sought to retain control over the presidential nomination process. A populist reform movement began to grow in the late sixties whose vision was to place control of the nominations in the hands of the average voter.
Using the presidential nominations from 1968 to 2008, she traces how the Democratic Party in particular moved from caucuses (which favored party control) and winner-take-all primaries (which allowed weak candidates with early wins to gain more momentum than they should) to the proportional representation (which gives the voter-on-the-street control) reflected in the modern Democratic nomination process.
Kamarck shows that presidential candidates who don’t focus on the early voting states do poorly, and further, that campaigners who don’t shift their focus from winning votes to winning delegates in the second half of the campaign likewise fail to make the cut.
The last part of the book is devoted to discussing the whys and wherefores of uncommitted superdelegates, and whether or not party conventions really matter anymore. Her final chapter is particularly strong, as she talks about possible reforms being considered after the 2008 conventions.
I read the book as part of the research for my upcoming novel, The Candidate. It was an eye-opener to the back room machinations of both political parties, as well as a good primer on basic campaign strategy to capture the nomination of one of the major parties. I recommend the book if you are a political junkie looking for in-depth, behind-the-scenes problems and tactics of a race to win the presidential nomination.
May 5, 2016
Elaine did an episode of Fresh Air with Terry Gross on this book, and it was enthralling. I couldn't wait to pick up her book, and was fairly let down. And yet it is definitely a good resource for anyone looking to understand the modern nominating process; how and where it evolved from. She spends 200 pages going into far too much detail recounting rule changes and explaining the obvious (guess what, the sequence of state primaries and caucuses dictates campaign strategy!) - told as the true super delegate that she is. Elaine, your DNC meeting minutes just aren't that interesting. Finally, in the final chapter, she gets into some of the interesting bits like proposed alternative systems and why they've never (and likely never will) been adopted.
May 12, 2016
The historical facts within this book are meticulously researched and well put together. Where this book didn't work for me was in getting the basics down and presenting them in an easy to follow manner. This is a somewhat complicated system we are talking about, so for example, it would have been helpful to discuss each of the concepts briefly at the beginning so I could understand what they are - instead of reading about super delegates for 200 pages before we finally got to what they are.
September 24, 2016
This book was very detailed and answered the questions I had, but it was too drawn out for my liking. The author divided this book into categories which left the author repeating much of the same information for each topic. I think this book would have been better for me had it been organized in a chronological manner.
Much of the details were a bit dry and it took me a long time to get through this book.
Much of the details were a bit dry and it took me a long time to get through this book.
April 19, 2016
Well written book on the American nomination process- delegates, primaries, caucuses, super-delegates, etc. Author is unique in having been involved in politics around primaries (both working for candidates and for political commissions working on selection issues) and in now being an academic- so readers get the best of both worlds.
October 1, 2011
For hardcore political junkies primarily - I got a bit lost in the historical details myself at times! Kamarck does succeed in addressing the central issue of how the system has become so front-loaded, as it appears it will be next year as well.
June 12, 2014
Generally well written, which is important considering the subject matter is not exactly thrilling. That being said, it provides a very clear picture of how the current nominating system has grown out of the complex interactions between presidents/presidential campaigns and the party apparatus.
March 17, 2016
Excellent study on primary politics
I really enjoyed this book, and I learned a lot about a topic I thought I already knew a lot about. Great review of the literature and of the political process, too!
I really enjoyed this book, and I learned a lot about a topic I thought I already knew a lot about. Great review of the literature and of the political process, too!
March 28, 2016
Not elegantly written, but still extremely interesting and eye-opening.
May 16, 2016
Finally I've learnt how primaries work!
April 5, 2020
Primaries are so convoluted and awful but this book breaks them down super well. An enjoyable read.
October 27, 2023
Overviews primary reform ideas spurred by 2008 election
April 21, 2016
Very informative but very dry and somewhat tedious.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews