Presidential Preference Votes

When it comes to electing a president, Pennsylvania walks to the beat of a different drum.

Your presidential vote does not determine the presidential nominee. It is merely an indicator of the popular opinion in the Commonwealth. It lets the party leaders know what you are thinking and may influence the nominee’s VP pick.

The vote that really determines the nominee is your vote for the delegates who will represent us. The delegates attend the National Convention representing our US Congressional District and cast their vote on our behalf.

In other States, the delegates run committed to a particular candidate. This is why McCain is assured the nomination 6 months before the actual voting takes place. Pennsylvania differs in that our delegates run uncommitted, meaning they may have leanings but are not locked into voting in a particular way.

You can strengthen your preference vote by also electing delegates who are leaning the same way as yourself. These delegates are folks just like us with opinions about how things should be done and who should do it. But unlike us, their opinion will determine who Pennsylvania nominates for President.

Because the nomination is already determined, I’m encouraging everyone to ignore the electability factor and instead make a message vote about the type of leadership they’d like to see in America.

The Green Papers helps explain this process. A follow up post to this will have more details on the delegates.