What I don’t understand - and please explain if you can - is why Bernie and like-minded people like AOC etc don’t break away from the likes of the Clintons and the Harrises and form their own party. Surely there must be some systemic hurdle keeping them from at least attempting right?
Yes, there aren’t enough progressive voters for that party to stand a chance and as we have a money driven electoral system there isn’t enough funding for a viable leftist party.
I think there are enough voters, but not with the current FPTP and electoral college system. In my native country people vote for their candidates in a first round, then the top two candidates (by popular vote) go into the second round and people vote again between those. That way people are not afraid to cast their vote to their actual first choice like in the US (“if I vote for this 3rd party, I’m just helping the party I don’t like to beat the other party I don’t like that much either but it’s not as bad as the first one”).
Because they worry (with good reason) that in a first past the post voting system, splitting the liberal votes from the left votes will mean that every single seat in the house and senate will go to the republicans. As shit as the democrats are, they aren’t dyed in the wool fascists. The republicans do enough damage with a simple majority. With a two thirds majority they can start making changes to the constitution. And the very structure of the government.
I had the question 5 years ago, but watching it closely in last 5 years, I can see having a third party is very difficult, everything is against changing two party system, even Trump, as popular as he is, can do is only to taking over not start from scratch.
What I don’t understand - and please explain if you can - is why Bernie and like-minded people like AOC etc don’t break away from the likes of the Clintons and the Harrises and form their own party. Surely there must be some systemic hurdle keeping them from at least attempting right?
Because they are just a facade to make the DNC more friendly to the working class. It is all theatre for them
Yes, there aren’t enough progressive voters for that party to stand a chance and as we have a money driven electoral system there isn’t enough funding for a viable leftist party.
I think there are enough voters, but not with the current FPTP and electoral college system. In my native country people vote for their candidates in a first round, then the top two candidates (by popular vote) go into the second round and people vote again between those. That way people are not afraid to cast their vote to their actual first choice like in the US (“if I vote for this 3rd party, I’m just helping the party I don’t like to beat the other party I don’t like that much either but it’s not as bad as the first one”).
If we had a less bipolar system things would look very different.
Because they worry (with good reason) that in a first past the post voting system, splitting the liberal votes from the left votes will mean that every single seat in the house and senate will go to the republicans. As shit as the democrats are, they aren’t dyed in the wool fascists. The republicans do enough damage with a simple majority. With a two thirds majority they can start making changes to the constitution. And the very structure of the government.
I had the question 5 years ago, but watching it closely in last 5 years, I can see having a third party is very difficult, everything is against changing two party system, even Trump, as popular as he is, can do is only to taking over not start from scratch.
Correct. It’s about money