When it comes to politics, few voters have more of an overall impact on election outcomes than the independent voter. Parties certainly have a major voice in most elections, since they serve as base support for candidates. The real difference, however, comes from the way in which those candidates must appeal to independents.
Independents have always been easy to define, but harder to pigeonhole into any neat ideological classification. Simply put, independents are merely voters who refuse to align with traditional political parties. This causes them to move their support from one party to the next in any given election.
This obviously poses some challenges to candidates who are trying to identify potential voters. These candidates have to try to identify the issues that are important not only to their base of supporters, but to those independents as well. This dynamic has some distinct advantages for the political system, but some disadvantages as well.
From an advantage standpoint, the need to appeal to these more moderate voters serves as a moderating influence on even the most extreme candidates. These candidates must often forsake some of the more extreme positions to ensure that they are able to attract a large enough percentage of independents to secure a victory.
The negative aspect of this moderation is equally easy to understand. Independents shift their allegiance so often that they effectively cause government to swing back and forth between one party or the other. That prevents any one party from sustaining a majority long enough to enact any long-term legislative agenda. This results in legislative goals constantly being realigned, and often prevents any real change from occurring.
Nevertheless, most experts tend to agree that these independents provide more advantages than disadvantages for the nation as a whole. Due to their ability to force candidates into the political mainstream, independent voter groups serve as an important bulwark against institutionalized extremism.
Independents have always been easy to define, but harder to pigeonhole into any neat ideological classification. Simply put, independents are merely voters who refuse to align with traditional political parties. This causes them to move their support from one party to the next in any given election.
This obviously poses some challenges to candidates who are trying to identify potential voters. These candidates have to try to identify the issues that are important not only to their base of supporters, but to those independents as well. This dynamic has some distinct advantages for the political system, but some disadvantages as well.
From an advantage standpoint, the need to appeal to these more moderate voters serves as a moderating influence on even the most extreme candidates. These candidates must often forsake some of the more extreme positions to ensure that they are able to attract a large enough percentage of independents to secure a victory.
The negative aspect of this moderation is equally easy to understand. Independents shift their allegiance so often that they effectively cause government to swing back and forth between one party or the other. That prevents any one party from sustaining a majority long enough to enact any long-term legislative agenda. This results in legislative goals constantly being realigned, and often prevents any real change from occurring.
Nevertheless, most experts tend to agree that these independents provide more advantages than disadvantages for the nation as a whole. Due to their ability to force candidates into the political mainstream, independent voter groups serve as an important bulwark against institutionalized extremism.
No comments:
Post a Comment