Minor Party Primaries Results and Discussion

[Donerail]

Strongly doubt that the DSA will formally endorse either Hawkins or La Riva. The DSA takes endorsements seriously and wants them to mean something — no point in endorsing (which the DSA uses to mean putting financial and organizing resources behind a candidate, not just providing a stamp of approval) a third-party presidential candidate who's going to be mostly irrelevant.

[Donerail]

Strongly doubt that the DSA will formally endorse either Hawkins or La Riva. The DSA takes endorsements seriously and wants them to mean something — no point in endorsing (which the DSA uses to mean putting financial and organizing resources behind a candidate, not just providing a stamp of approval) a third-party presidential candidate who's going to be mostly irrelevant.

Read: they’re opportunists who want to keep getting on the gravy train of elected office.

Yes, the DSA is focused on winning local and state races while building a rank-and-file union movement. Not sure that either of those qualify as a "gravy train" (even in Chicago, being an alderman isn't what it once was). Also not sure how that makes them "opportunists."

You know what makes a candidate really irrelevant? It’s not having backup

I can think of lots of other things that make candidates irrelevant! You're using the phrase "popular front" like this is Europe in the 30s, but the conditions in America now are entirely different — there is no major left-wing campaign in this election and no hope of building one. Whether a "popular front" includes five or seven fairly minor groups will not impact that outcome.

and the fact that the Democratic Socialists of America won’t aide the only major independent democratic socialist running for president as part of a popular front puts them right where the now social democratic CPUSA are, either cowards, opportunists, plants, or odd sectarians who lack solidarity.

Who would that be? I certainly haven't heard of any major candidates running for president to the left of one Joe Biden.

What’s worse is that given GPUS + SPUSA have around 250k and 1.5k members respectively along with 131 elected officials, how exactly then is the HH/ANW campaign irrelevant?

Congratulations, you have a handful of school board members and a strong chance of getting as many votes as that McMuffin guy in 2016.

The goal is to pick fights you have a chance of winning. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't, but the DSA's accomplished more in the last few years than decades of quixotic presidential campaigns. Don't blame people because they won't fight your losing battles.

[Donerail]

I can think of lots of other things that make candidates irrelevant! You're using the phrase "popular front" like this is Europe in the 30s, but the conditions in America now are entirely different — there is no major left-wing campaign in this election and no hope of building one. Whether a "popular front" includes five or seven fairly minor groups will not impact that outcome.

I’m aware of the current conditions in the United States isn’t ready for a mass Left party, certainly one independent of the Democratic Party. However, not building such a movement now is inane given that time and time again, siding with the Democratic Party or “establishment” across the Anglophone world is killer to any social movement. They’re just going to chew the DSA up and keep the organization as limited to a few pockets as possible.

As opposed to the relevance of the Green Party?

Who would that be? I certainly haven't heard of any major candidates running for president to the left of one Joe Biden.

I’m speaking comparatively of the GPUS/SPUSA/Solidarity and PSL/PFP/LUP poles this election, the independent “major” third party tickets. You’ve heard of them.

I've heard of those "major" candidates! Certainly not major candidates.

Congratulations, you have a handful of school board members and a strong chance of getting as many votes as that McMuffin guy in 2016.

lol, like the DSA is somehow radically more relevant. The Green Party at least recently got the Democratic Party to adopt the ripped-off GND, what national legislation has the DSA put forth?

That'd be the DSA's doing, thank you Introduced by a DSA congressman (those exist!).

The goal is to pick fights you have a chance of winning. Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't, but the DSA's accomplished more in the last few years than decades of quixotic presidential campaigns. Don't blame people because they won't fight your losing battles.

Don’t blame anyone but this line of thinking when the solidly liberal Democratic Party kicks y’all to the curb when they don’t see a need for your kind anymore as a faction limited to safe districts to show the Democratic Party is a “big tent” and is “fair”. At some point, they’ll throw the DSA away like a wet noodle and close the gates for anything that whiffs of social democratic ideals with a spine, or anyone that may assert themselves that isn’t part of the ruling clique.

Have fun organizing in the wilderness.

[Donerail]

You seem furious that not every left-wing organization embraces the theory that the only way to build a movement is by running futile presidential campaigns. Perhaps if that strategy had any success to show for it, you would be able to make a more persuasive case. Unfortunately...

[Donerail]

You seem furious that not every left-wing organization embraces the theory that the only way to build a movement is by running futile presidential campaigns. Perhaps if that strategy had any success to show for it, you would be able to make a more persuasive case. Unfortunately...

lol, in no way was I suggesting that. I just find it very bad that the DSA has no solidarity.

"Solidarity" should mean something more than endorsing a no-hope presidential campaign.

[Donerail]

Well I'm 22 and I haven't seen a single post about whoever this lady is. I do have one FB friend who is very into Gloria La Riva though!

[Donerail]

Why did the reform party nominate a joke like Rocky over an actual state representative?

Not an actual state representative, a New Hampshire state representative. There's an important difference — there are 400 seats in the New Hampshire house, and each representative represents 3,300 people on average. It's not any more impressive than Jill Stein's service on the Lexington Town Meeting.