A single national primary day is a horrible idea. Upstart candidates like Obama or Huckabee would never have a shot under such a system because while it is possible for a non-establishment candidate to get his or her message out in one small single state and then use that momentum to springboard onto the national scene; it would be virtually impossible for such an upstart candidate to defeat an establishment candidate where all of the primaries were held on a single day due to the fact that the establishment candidate would have a virtually insurmountable organizational advantage nationwide.
Here is what I predict the maps would have looked like with such a flawed system in place this year assuming that the caucus states were in fact still caucus states under such a system:
Democratic PrimaryClinton - red
Obama - blue
Edwards - baby blue
Biden - Green
Richardson - Grey
And sadly this may be being kind to Obama. Remember that prior to Iowa, Hillary had huge leads in the national polls. It wasn't until after Obama won the Iowa caucuses that he surged in the national polls. Additionally, with Iowa not being nearly as important in a national primary, I think that Obama is probably unable to spend the time necessary to carry that state. Remember he only won the caucuses by about 4 percentage points, and that was after camping out in the state for several months. In a national primary day system, it wouldn't have made much sense for him to have spent so much time in Iowa.
Republican primaryRomney - Red
Giulliani - Blue
Huckabee - Green
McCain - Grey
I'll admit that this Republican prediction is a shot in the dark.
Poll
