Why We're Behind the Curve

with progressive candidates perpetually.

We rediscover this fact in October before Presidential election years and forget it in off years when low turnout could work to our advantage.

The filing deadlines:
Here are the deadlines in each state to file to become a candidate:
Alabama: November 6, 2015 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Alaska: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Arizona: June 1, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Arkansas: November 9, 2015 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
California: March 11, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Colorado: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Connecticut: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Delaware: May 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Florida: June 24, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Georgia: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Hawaii: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Idaho: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Illinois: November 30, 2015 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Indiana: February 5, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Iowa: March 18, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Kansas: June 1, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Kentucky: January 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Louisiana: September 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Maine: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Maryland: February 3, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Massachusetts: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Michigan: April 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Minnesota: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Mississippi: January 8, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Missouri: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Montana: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Nebraska: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Nevada: March 18, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
New Hampshire: June 2016(Source: Politics1.com)
New Jersey: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
New Mexico: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
New York: April 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
North Carolina: February 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
North Dakota: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Ohio: December 16, 2015 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Oklahoma: April 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Oregon: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Pennsylvania: February 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Rhode Island: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
South Carolina: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
South Dakota: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Tennessee: April 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Texas: December 14, 2015 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Utah: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Vermont: June 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Virginia: March 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
Washington: May 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)
West Virginia: January 30, 2016 (Source: State Secretary of State’s website)
Wyoming: May 2016 (Source: Politics1.com)

And why is there not a good reference source of this information for progressives up permanently and edited as states play games with the date?

Alabama, Arkansas and Illinois are on the shortest leash. Texas and Ohio are next.

Florida has the most opportunity. Put together 175,000 committed names on a petition, file in June, keep that number together and add some over the next five months; you might be able to shock an over-confident incumbent.

That’s where a lot of pick-ups happen–incumbents who have not or have been rarely challenged for office. In Alabama and Arkansas, they know the risk and want to know exactly who is on the ballot before the Iowa caucus. Illinois looks like an old pols protection racket. Other are set up just-in-time for the primary date; great setup for Freedom Caucus insurgents with organization and money or for eliminating deadwood.

9 Comments

Vic78 on October 29, 2015 at 12:43 am

There’s great opportunity there. I believe Wimsatt’s “How to Get Stupid White Men Out of Office” should be required reading. Some of the people here should really consider running for office.

Errol on October 29, 2015 at 9:14 am

Thanks for info.

The Voice In The Wilderness on October 29, 2015 at 1:18 pm

Illinois looks like an old pols protection racket.

What you see is what you get. Also, the signature requirement for third party candidates and independents is orders of magnitude higher than for Republicans and Democrats. I can hardly believe this is Constitutional. One’s best bet is to register as a candidate in a major party. I haven’t looked into this for about 15 years, but then it only took 600 signatures to get on a major party primary ballot for Congress. It took IIRC 25,000 to get on a third party ballot and 60,000 for the general.

TarheelDem on October 29, 2015 at 2:19 pm

So anyone trying to pry this open has to deal with the frustration about these realities and plan the campaign in advance to win. Keeping a secret among 60,000 people (175,000 is the magic number at the moment to take a Congressional seat) is likely to be difficult and opposition and whispering campaigns can form quickly.

You do miss the days of Jimmy Madison when a jug of peach brandy outside the courthouse (and sometimes inside) was sufficient to win a seat in Congress.
The Voice In The Wilderness on October 29, 2015 at 2:34 pm

BTW, this is an example of Illinois bipartisanship – keeping outsiders out of the goody bin.
- TarheelDem on October 29, 2015 at 5:58 pm
  
  Partitioning the turf through gerrymanders also shows a tit-for-tat understanding of bipartisanship. (Until the crazies get in for a redistricting session. I don’t think that has happened yet in Illinois.)
  - The Voice In The Wilderness on October 30, 2015 at 2:46 pm
    
    No. Each party does take the lion’s share of seats, but powerful figures in the “opposition” party and given safe seats. Sometimes the opposition leaders cooperate by acceding to a map giving the other party more seats in exchange for savaging a district of their own party’s mavericks. With this system, the party wins power and influence when they draw the map, and the party’s leaders consolidate their power when the opposition draws the map.

Marie3 on October 30, 2015 at 1:09 am

We’ve been behind the curve since a few days after the 2008 election.

Greg Mitchell Upton Sinclair’s EPIC Campaign

Maybe today we aren’t any better at detecting and overcoming campaign dirty tricks and big money, and Obama hasn’t exhibited anything like FDR’s progressive leaning and savvy political moves, but even with his loss, Sinclair had a huge impact on pushing political progressivism forward. In consideration of FDR not weighting in on the CA general election, Merriam (R) agreed to endorse the New Deal down the road.

Revealing the true strength of the grassroots movement, however, two dozen EPICs won election to the state legislature, including Hawkins and Culbert Olson.

Those gains emboldened the progressives in the FDR admin to push harder for their policies.

TarheelDem on October 30, 2015 at 6:00 pm

All that is recoverable at this point is the time between now and the filing date for each state. Those other opportunities have gone forever.

Vic78 on October 29, 2015 at 12:43 am

There’s great opportunity there. I believe Wimsatt’s “How to Get Stupid White Men Out of Office” should be required reading. Some of the people here should really consider running for office.
Errol on October 29, 2015 at 9:14 am

Thanks for info.
The Voice In The Wilderness on October 29, 2015 at 1:18 pm

Illinois looks like an old pols protection racket.

What you see is what you get. Also, the signature requirement for third party candidates and independents is orders of magnitude higher than for Republicans and Democrats. I can hardly believe this is Constitutional. One’s best bet is to register as a candidate in a major party. I haven’t looked into this for about 15 years, but then it only took 600 signatures to get on a major party primary ballot for Congress. It took IIRC 25,000 to get on a third party ballot and 60,000 for the general.
- TarheelDem on October 29, 2015 at 2:19 pm
  
  So anyone trying to pry this open has to deal with the frustration about these realities and plan the campaign in advance to win. Keeping a secret among 60,000 people (175,000 is the magic number at the moment to take a Congressional seat) is likely to be difficult and opposition and whispering campaigns can form quickly.
  
  You do miss the days of Jimmy Madison when a jug of peach brandy outside the courthouse (and sometimes inside) was sufficient to win a seat in Congress.
- The Voice In The Wilderness on October 29, 2015 at 2:34 pm
  
  BTW, this is an example of Illinois bipartisanship – keeping outsiders out of the goody bin.
  - TarheelDem on October 29, 2015 at 5:58 pm
    
    Partitioning the turf through gerrymanders also shows a tit-for-tat understanding of bipartisanship. (Until the crazies get in for a redistricting session. I don’t think that has happened yet in Illinois.)
    - The Voice In The Wilderness on October 30, 2015 at 2:46 pm
      
      No. Each party does take the lion’s share of seats, but powerful figures in the “opposition” party and given safe seats. Sometimes the opposition leaders cooperate by acceding to a map giving the other party more seats in exchange for savaging a district of their own party’s mavericks. With this system, the party wins power and influence when they draw the map, and the party’s leaders consolidate their power when the opposition draws the map.
Marie3 on October 30, 2015 at 1:09 am

We’ve been behind the curve since a few days after the 2008 election.

Greg Mitchell Upton Sinclair’s EPIC Campaign

Maybe today we aren’t any better at detecting and overcoming campaign dirty tricks and big money, and Obama hasn’t exhibited anything like FDR’s progressive leaning and savvy political moves, but even with his loss, Sinclair had a huge impact on pushing political progressivism forward. In consideration of FDR not weighting in on the CA general election, Merriam (R) agreed to endorse the New Deal down the road.

Revealing the true strength of the grassroots movement, however, two dozen EPICs won election to the state legislature, including Hawkins and Culbert Olson.

Those gains emboldened the progressives in the FDR admin to push harder for their policies.
- TarheelDem on October 30, 2015 at 6:00 pm
  
  All that is recoverable at this point is the time between now and the filing date for each state. Those other opportunities have gone forever.

Why We’re Behind the Curve

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