If you can design the Primary calendar, what would it be like?

[pppolitics]

If you can design the Primary calendar, what would it be like?

Which would go first, second, third... etc.?

[pppolitics]

I would go with the closest state, then the next closest states, etc.

[Del Tachi]

For 2020:

January 7:  IA
January 14:  NH
January 21:  NV, SC
January 28:  FL, MI, WY

February 11 (Tsunami Tuesday):  AL, AK, AZ, AR, CO, CT, DE, GA, ID, IL, MA, MN, MS, MO, MT, ND, NJ, NM, NY, OK, TN, TX, UT, VA, WV
February 18:  KS, LA, ME, OR
February 25:  MD, D.C.

March 3 (Mini Tuesday):  CA, HI, NC, OH, RI, VT
March 11:  WI
March 17:  KY, IN, OR
March 31:  NE

April 14:  PA
April 24:  WA

May 12:  SD

   
This is basically a modified version of the 2008 GOP calendar.  I like front-loading the first states in early January, with the traditional states represented along with some bigger prizes before Super Tuesday (FL and MI).  I then like a big, big Super Tuesday followed by a smaller round of big states voting together a few weeks later (March 3). 

An early start and compressed calendar means that frontrunners and early winners are elevated quickly, without Bloomberg types being able to realistically contend the huge ST calendar.  Front-loading also means a nominee can be determined quicker and there's more time for the party to heal any primary divisions before the GE.   

[Jumped off the American Sinking Ship]

some time in may: USA

[TheOnlyOne234]

May 1st all of america votes for the nominee

[Grassroots]

National primary on one day in April, if one candidate doesn't get a majority (in almost all scenarios this is going to happen) then a runoff between the top two occurs in late May.

[Paul Biya isn’t going far enough]

Jan 11: AK, HI, AZ, ME, PR
Jan 18: GA, MS, LA, ND, SD
Jan 25: AR, KY, TN, CA, NM
Feb 1: Democrats Abroad
Feb 8: WA, CT, KS, PA
Feb 15: Virgin Islands
Feb 22: VA, DE, DC, MD, WV
Feb 29: Northern Mariana Islands
Mar 14: WY
Mar 21: MA, RI, NJ, NE
Mar 28: IL, IN, MT, MO
April 4: NY, TX
April 11: AL, OK
April 18: UT, CO, ID, VT, OR
April 25: WI, MN, MI, OH, NC
May 2: SC, NH, NV, IA, FL

Because screw logic and order.

[OBD]

I would have a national primary with a few early ones to minnow the field down. The early primaries are geographically diverse, and occur in states with middling population. A rotating system for the 5 early states may have merit, and obviously caucuses are abolished (as much as I'd like to partake in an Oregon caucus).

2020
January 7: Oregon
January 21: Connecticut
February 4: South Carolina
February 18: Oklahoma
March 2: Minnesota

March 16: Nationwide Primary

For delegate allocation, I would have it based purely on popular vote percentages, with a uniform 5% threshold for delegates.

[Transgender for Everybody]

2020: Nationwide primary on June 2

[Trump v. Wong Kim Ark]

I would have a national primary with a few early ones to minnow the field down. The early primaries are geographically diverse, and occur in states with middling population. A rotating system for the 5 early states may have merit, and obviously caucuses are abolished (as much as I'd like to partake in an Oregon caucus).

2020
January 7: Oregon
January 21: Connecticut
February 4: South Carolina
February 18: Oklahoma
March 2: Minnesota

March 16: Nationwide Primary

For delegate allocation, I would have it based purely on popular vote percentages, with a uniform 5% threshold for delegates.

I like this idea, but I will say that Iowa should go on the first Tuesday after the general.

[European Lefty]

EDIT: Misread the thread title and thought we were talking about Democrats specifically. I would apply similar principles to the Republican primary.

Having though long and hard, I'd go for groups of states all voting on the same day in an order specifically designed to keep it interesting for as long as possible. Caucuses are banned unless a state Democratic Party can make a very convincing case that it would save enough money to make it worthwhile. In an ideal scenario, delegates are allocated proportionally based on the Statewide vote using the D'Hondt method, with a 5% threshold to weed out the ones who aren't serious candidates.

1) The territories, to give them their day in the limelight and to give the campaign a low-key start. I haven't decide whether to do all of them at once or split them geographically:
----1a) American Samoa, CNMI, Guam
----1b) Virgin Islands, DC
2) States with high Native American populations in order to raise awareness and draw attention to native issues and their impact on the race: AK, NM, SD, OK, MT, ND
3) Safe Republican states with few delegates: ID, WY, UT, NE, MO, IA, IN
4) The Conservative South. By this time we probably know who will do best with African American voters from polling and results, so this won't decide the race too early but will help it to start getting interesting: AL, GA, MS, LA, AR, TN, KY, WV, SC
5) A geographic spread of states that are more representative of the Democratic electorate but which won't be competitive in the general election: IL, WA, MD, AZ, MA
6) The swing states. Just as the race starts heating up, to make it more interesting: MI, MN, WI, PA, NC, NV, OH, NH, ME, FL, CO (alright so a rather loose definition of "swing state")
7) CA, NY, TX. These states are so huge and can have such a big impact I think they deserve to be their own group.
8) Safe Democrat states that aren't already covered. We should have a good idea of who the contests is between but should have enough delegates left to decide the winner, and provide a high-octane finish just before the convention: OR, NJ, CT, DE, RI, VT, MA, HI, VA. Also Democrats Abroad because I can't find another group to put them in.

[Cabbage]

National primary second Saturday in May. Both parties have a 10% cutoff to get delegates. Delegates are distributed proportionally (after all votes for nonviable candidates are removed), with all non-winners being rounded down, and state/territory-wide winners getting the extra delegates.
i.e. for Iowa with current results, using initial results due to private vote:

Klobuchar - 5
Biden - 6
Warren - 8
Buttigieg - 9
Sanders - 13

If no one gets a majority of delegates, top two nationwide advance to runoff two weeks later.

Also, caucuses are now banned, and everyone uses a primary where delegates are actually loyal for both rounds.

[DKrol]

25 states vote on the first Tuesday in February.

25 states vote on the first Tuesday in March.

All states have primaries.

[MarkD]

I like the theory that holding primaries in small states first means that retail politics -- meeting voters one-on-one and holding lots of town hall meetings -- matters more than raising lots of money for lots of TV advertising. So I would create this schedule:

Prohibit any state from holding a primary or caucus before April 1.

Allow only the smallest states to hold a primary or caucus during April, if they so choose. Smallest means having just three or four electoral college votes -- by 2024 that would be AK, DC, DE, HA, ID, ME, MT, NH, ND, RI, SD, VT, WV, and WY.

Allow medium-sized states to hold primaries or caucuses during May. That's states with five to eleven electoral college votes -- AL, AR, CO, CT, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, MD, MA, MN, MS, MO, NE, NV, NM, OK, OR, SC, TN, UT, and WI.

Make all of the rest of the largest states wait until June. That's states with twelve electoral college votes or more in 2024 -- AZ, CA, FL, GA, IL, MI, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, TX, VA, and WA. This is  when the majority of the delegates will be selected, and hence the nomination will not be "locked up" until June.

[Cassandra]

I would oppose a national primary day simply because that would make it much easier for billionaires to buy our elections. Instead, I would keep an "early four" system, but divide the rest up into roughly equal, geographically diverse, primaries. I would also hold all primaries in the spring, so that inclement winter weather cannot impact the voting process. Something like the following:

4/7: New Mexico
4/14: Mississippi
4/21: Maine
4/28: Nebraska
5/5: Super Tuesday 1 (15 States)
5/12: Super Tuesday 2 (15 States)
5/19: Super Tuesday 3 (16 States)

[LabourJersey]

I'd abolish caucuses, and break up states into four regions: South, Northeast, Midwest/Heartland and the West. I'd keep the early states but re-arrange the order, all voting on Saturdays. An example for 2020:

Sat. Jan 4: Nevada

Jan. 11: South Carolina

Jan. 18: New Hampshire

Jan. 25: Iowa

Have a two-week break (the super bowl weekend is in the middle) and begin series of Super Tuesday-style primary days every two or three weeks, known as Super Saturdays.

Feb. 8: West Super Saturday

Feb. 29: South Super Saturday

Mar. 21: Northeast Super Saturday

Apr. 11: Midwest Super Saturday


The territories can elect to hold their primaries on whatever primary day works best for them. I'd hope that this makes campaigns a little easier logistically, essentially trying to get some of the benefits of a national primary without going there

[SInNYC]

Filter round: IA, VT, NV, SC, OR in 4 weeks. I like having 5 states with no big media markets, and these are balanced well racially (2 white, 1 black, 1 Hispanic, and 1 with a small but significant Asian presence for Democrats (no map is racially diverse for Republicans)), land-wise (IA/VT are rural, NV is urban, SC/OR are mixed), and the smallest representatives from 5 different parts of the country.  I swapped VT for NH since NH is too conservative for new england or the northeast and also has the Boston media market.

6: DC. Symbolic value, also entirely urban unless you count NV

7: MI. Rust belt wasnt represented in the filter round, mainly because their media markets are too big.

Selection round (3 weeks): Purple/pink states. One of PA/OH, one of WI/MN, one of VA/NC, CO, MT, NM. Some of these really arent swing, but I want some regional balance too. We can alternate states left out across cycles.

Regional primaries (2 weeks): MA/RI/CT, AL/MS, SD/ND, AK/HI, WY/UT/ID. Remaining candidates can strategize which regions to camp out in. 24+DC states are done.

Selection round 2 (4 weeks): AZ, WA, GA, MO, NJ, 3 states left out of selection round 1. Add any small states significantly dominated by media markets from these states.  This gets us to about 35, by which time somebody will have dominated or it will be a two way race.

Final round (4 weeks): The remaining states will coronate or pick between the finalists. Have at least one big state (CA/NY/FL/TX/IL) each week.

BETTER SOLUTION: Public financing, no PACS, no Citizens United, national primary.

WORSE SOLUTIONS:
National primary: richest and/or preordained candidates win
Regional primary: I dont see why one region should be given preference for any cycle, and the above is in some sense an anti-regional scheme.

[Noravea]

I would use Census Regions of the United States to determine days primaries take place.

This would still allow for multiple weeks of campaigning and results, with nine regions voting over the course of nine weeks, or the first week of February 2020 to the middle of April 2020.

Perhaps to offer greater representation, the throughout January 2020 there is one primary a week to represent the geographic diversity of the country...

Early Primaries: Allow for generally smaller but diverse states from across the country to get first vote. It will be ethnically diverse, and will allow every region a chance to shine to weed out the minor candidates

January 7: Iowa, New Hampshire
January 14: New Mexico, South Carolina
January 21: Maryland, Rhode Island
January 28: Montana, Hawaii

Middle Primaries: These primaries are weekly and divided by region. This will be simpler, candidates being able to effectively remain in one region of states to campaign for each week

February 4: New England (Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut)
February 11: Mountain (Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona)
February 18: East North Central (Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio)
February 25: Pacific (Alaska, California, Oregon, Washington)
March 3: East South Central (Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama)
March 10: Mid-Atlantic (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey)
March 17: West South Central (Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas)
March 24: South Atlantic (DC, Delaware, West Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Puerto Rico, Florida)
March 31: West South Central (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas)

Late Primaries: With every state having voted, the territories now get to vote. These are here in case there is a contested primary by the end, and it will force candidates to campaign here for every last delegate.

April 14: Territories (Democrats Abroad, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa)

Following Primaries: With all of the states counted, Super Delegates on April 21 must formally declare who they are voting for, which will then be added to the final delegate count. There will also be new National Delegates, with approximately 150. The first 100 will be apportioned based on national popular vote. The final fifty will be given to the overall winner of the national popular vote. At this point most elections would already know who the nominee is, but if there is still no clear nominee, candidates who dropped out can release their delegates, who can pick a new candidate by May 5. After this final count, delegates will be locked in for the first ballot at the Democratic convention.

I think this system would make every state somewhat relevant to the nomination process. It will encourage candidates to stick in to the end, with the system also providing for a clear way to weed out a candidate in a contested convention.

[defe07]

If we were to keep a standard primary format, I would agree with the Census Region primary plan. My proposal (the G.R.O.U.P. plan I posted under Presidential Election Process) would rely to much on shifts in the EV and a state may get lucky to be drawn as number 1 more than once.

    Region 1: Northeast

        Division 1: New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont): 6 contests

        Division 2: Mid-Atlantic (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania): 3 states

    Region 2: Midwest (Prior to June 1984, the Midwest Region was designated as the North Central Region.)

        Division 3: East North Central (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin): 5 contests

        Division 4: West North Central (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota): 7 contests

    Region 3: South

        Division 5: South Atlantic (Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, District of Columbia, and West Virginia) + Puerto Rico & US Virgin Islands: 11 contests

        Division 6: East South Central (Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee): 4 contests

        Division 7: West South Central (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas): 4 contests

    Region 4: West

        Division 8: Mountain (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming): 8 contests

        Division 9: Pacific (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington) + Guam, American Samoa & Mariana Islands: 8 contests

My proposal would allow for 9 Super Primary weeks, where states can vote on Tuesday or any other day during the SP week. My plan would be to have the 9 Super Primary weeks last 5 months: 2 in January, 2 in February, 2 in March, 2 in April and 1 in May.

Subregions would be rotated every primary year. If the number of contests are more than 7 during a SP week, states and territories may pair up (but the biggest state of that division wouldn't be paired up)

[andjey]

February 15th: Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Illinois, Arizona
February 22th: Nevada
February 29th: New Hampshire, Georgia

Super Tuesday (March 3rd):
Alabama
Delaware
Iowa
Kansas
Mississippi
Maine
Montana
New Mexico
North Carolina
Ohio
Tennessee
Virginia

March 10th:
Arkansas
Colorado
Connecticut
Michigan
Rhode Island

March 15th: Texas, New York
March 22th: California, Florida

March 24th:
Louisiana
Maryland
Massachusetts
Missouri

April 7th: Washington, Minnesota
April 14th: Vermont, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming
April 21th: Oregon, Wisconsin
April 28th: South Dakota, Nebraska
May 12th: Alaska, Hawaii, Oklahoma
May 19th: West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky
May 26th: D.C., New Jersey, North Dakota

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

February 4th: District of Columbia
February 11th: Georgia, New York
February 18th: Maryland, Virginia
February 25th: Illinois, Connecticut

Super Tuesday (March 3rd):
California
Arizona
Colorado
Florida
Washington
Michigan
New Jersey
South Carolina
Pennsylvania

March 10th:
North Carolina
Massachusetts
New Hampshire

March 15th:
Wisconsin
Nevada
Oregon

March 22th:
Ohio
Iowa
New Mexico

March 24th:
Minnesota
Delaware
Mississippi
Tennessee

April 7th:
Indiana
Missouri
Louisiana

April 14th:
Alabama
Kentucky
Oklahoma

April 21th:
Hawaii
Utah
Kansas

April 28th:
Nebraska
Wyoming
Idaho

May 12th:
West Virginia
Maine
Montana

May 19th:
Rhode Island
Arkansas
South Dakota

May 26th:
North Dakota
Alaska
Vermont