March 29, 2024
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JuggaPolls: An Unbiased Look at Voting in the 2016 Presidential Primaries

What’s up Juggalos?

I want to get serious with you guys real quick and talk about something that may not the freshest subject, but that will effect each and every one of us for years to come.  Politics. Yeah I can hear it now…some of you are thinking ‘STALE!’  I know, but hear me out!  Give this article 10 mins out of your day, then form your own opinions and reach your own conclusions.  I’m gonna lay it all out for my family here because I honestly believe that deep down, Juggalos can make a REAL DIFFERENCE.

Modern history has shown that the younger generations of voters sadly are not active enough in politics. I’m writing today to say that this needs to change.  Juggalos especially are such an opinionated, influential group of people. It’s time that we stand up and get more involved in our future,  our Juggalittles’ future, and trust me, there’s no better time than right now!  We are in the middle of the presidential primaries as you read this (Tuesday March 8th Michigan is voting!).  These primary elections will decide who in the running will make it to the nomination (Democratic and Republican) and be in the running to be our next president.  This election’s presidential candidates may be the most diverse, and culturally different group of candidates in US history. I can just about guarantee that there is a candidate for everyone if you take the time to get to know them and who’s opinions and policies align the most with yours. Yes I know a lot of people who say ‘they all suck’, but I can guarantee if you educate yourself on the candidates, some suck worse than others.  If anything, vote to keep the one you like the least out of office!  Bottom line: Today’s younger generation’s voices need to be heard and what voices better than Juggalos? We are such a large group that if even half the ninjas reading this get active, we have a potential to change the outcome of this election!  (Yes, it’s really that close!) And listen ninjas, I know some of us may not be able to vote due to past bones, or some of us may not be of age, but PLEASE don’t let that stop your voice from being heard!  If you can even influence one other homie’s opinion and get them to vote, then that’s a huge accomplishment! Yes, one vote matters and I’ll prove it later.

So what exactly are the primaries and how do they work?  Don’t let there be shame in your game if you aren’t sure on this. I’ll openly admit that this election has taught me a ton I never knew about this process. So I’m going to do my best here to break it down for you without getting into too many boring details.  Each state, starting the February before the elections, holds presidential primaries or caucuses.  This is where residents of that state go and vote for which candidate in their party (Democrat or Republican) they want to earn the nomination (aka name go on the ballot in November).  Each state is assigned a certain amount of delegates.  Depending on how the primaries go, those delegates are divided and assigned to the candidates. At the end of all the primaries, the candidate with the most delegates wins the nomination and will be on the ballot in November!

Here’s an example:

The Colorado caucus was held Tuesday March 2nd

Democratic caucus results:
Bernie Sanders had 72,115 votes, 58.97% of the votes which assigned him 38 delegates.
Hillary Clinton had 49,314 votes, 40.32% of the votes which assigned her 28 delegates.

The same process goes with the Republican primaries.

Got it? Good. Now to maybe split a few wigs.  The Democratic nominations differ from the Republican ones in one major way that is VERY important to understand, super delegates.  No they don’t have capes, but they do have a shit ton of power as far as delegates are concerned. Super delegates make up about 15% of all delegates on the Democratic side, and are composed of all Democratic governors and members of congress. Why do they have so much power though? A super delegate has the power to vote for whoever they want to, and they can change their vote at any time during the primaries.  The Democratic Party put them in place to tip the scale if they felt as though the voters were on the verge of nominating a candidate that couldn’t win the general election.  To clarify. Currently in the Democratic race, Hilary holds a 45 to 1 lead over Bernie sanders when it comes to super delegates and is why she is in the lead. But if in the coming months they start to feel that Bernie Sanders is the more electable candidate over Hilary, they can change their votes and put him in the lead. It’s their goal to get a Democratic president, and they will vote for whoever they feel the public will support in the general election.  Makes for some interesting twists when you follow it. Republicans also have super delegates, but far less of them, and they must vote the same way all the other delegates do: by their states popular opinion. So they are no way nearly as influential.

So…that’s what the primaries are and how they really do matter. This shit is important to understand.  Oh, remember when I said one vote does matter? Last Tuesday in Methuen the vote was 3,409 – Bernie Sanders to 3,408 – Hillary Clinton. Bernie Sanders earned their delegate over Hillary by ONE single vote. Talk about narrow victory!

So when is it your turn to vote?  Most states have yet to vote in the primaries, and the ones left are really some heavy hitters (lots of delegates up for grabs) Below is a list of the upcoming schedule and how many delegates your state has.

(R) – Republican only (D) – Democratic only

  • Tue, Mar 8: Michigan 207, Mississippi 81, Hawaii Caucus(R)19, Idaho(R) 32
  • Tue, Mar 15: Florida 345, Illinois 251, Missouri 136, North Carolina 1293, Ohio 225
  • Tue, Mar 22: Arizona 143, Idaho Caucus(D) 27, Utah 77
  • Sat, Mar 26: Alaska(D) 20, Hawaii Caucus(D) 34, Washington Caucus(D) 118 Tue, Apr 5: Wisconsin 138
  • Sat, Apr 9: Wyoming Caucus (D) 18
  • Tue, April 19: New York 386
  • Tue, April 26:  Connecticut 98, Delaware 47, Maryland 156, Pennsylvania 281, Rhode Island 52
  • Tue, May 3: Indiana 149
  • Tue, May 10: Nebraska (R) 36, West Virginia 71
  • Tue, May 17: Kentucky(D) 61, Oregon 101
  • Tue, May 24: Washington (R) 44
  • Tue, Jun 7: California 718, Montana 54, New Jersey 193, New Mexico 67, North Dakota Caucus (D) 23, South Dakota 54
  • Tue, Jun 14: District of Columbia (D) 46

Republican and Democratic delegates are grouped together in those numbers. Some primaries are winner-take-all format. To learn more as well as the difference between a caucus and primary, read more here: http://www.uspresidentialelectionnews.com/2016-presidential-primary-schedule-calendar/#DDeXpz18pStHovm4.99

As I mentioned previously this year’s presidential candidate lineup may be the most diverse in history.  If you don’t know yet who you’d like to vote for, or simply want to learn more about these guys. Here is a great link outlining the candidates that are still in the running. https://www.crowdpac.com/elections/2016-presidential-election 

Try to catch a debate, great way to judge someone’s character! https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/2016-election/debates/schedule/

All you need to do is make sure you’re registered to vote! Every state is different, so here is a useful link to click on your state and check your registration status. I bet some of ya’ll are registered and don’t even realize it!  There’s also links here on how to register if you aren’t already, submit and absentee ballot if you’ll be out of town for a show, and links for your state to see your voter locations and deadlines.  https://www.usa.gov/register-to-vote

That’s about it!  Thanks for joining me to the end. I know it’s not the most exciting FLH article ever, but this stuff really matters!  Get to know our future leaders, find out who you like, and who you really don’t, and get out there spread the word and vote!

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    Faygoluvers Comments

  1. scruffy

    scruffy

    Comment posted on Sunday, March 6th, 2016 08:43 pm GMT -5 at 8:43 pm

    vote early. vote often.
    and unless you enjoy gridlock, i would recommend goin with the straight-party ticket.
    dunno who to vote for? no sweat. ask a respected friend or relative who is older and/or smarter than you, vote how they say.
    remember, though… if youre too weak to take your ass down to the booths, you got no room to say shit about whats wrong with the country. in fact, you are whats wrong.

  2. Pigg

    Pigg

    Comment posted on Monday, March 7th, 2016 07:42 am GMT -5 at 7:42 am

    It’s not like they can’t just google the candidates. In 2016 there’s no reason to be a blatently uninformed voter.

  3. scruffy

    scruffy

    Comment posted on Monday, March 7th, 2016 03:47 pm GMT -5 at 3:47 pm

    nonetheless, blatantly uninformed voters abound.

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