I couldn’t have said it any better….
There’s something unsettling about the way in which parties try to “clear the field” of challengers to favored candidates. We’ve complained when Democrats do this and we’ve complained when Republicans do this. It goes against the grain of Wisconsin politics.
Yes, “eating their own” – seen it.
It can be quite heartbreaking on the one side, exceedingly ruthless on the other. Also cancerous to group cohesion in the long run.
So you’d rather the respective parties just hand-picked their preferred candidates?
I’m sort of on both sides of this issue. On one hand, I hate to see candidates hand-picked instead of selected by voters in a competitive primary. That said, I also don’t vote in partisan primaries because I don’t consider myself a member of either party – so I have no right to select their candidate. I support the parties having closed primaries if they choose – the Republican and Democratic Parties should have the right to select their candidate however they choose, even if that means smoke-filled back rooms.
You have every right to vote in a primary if there is someone in a primary that you particularly do not want in office, and you want to do your part to vote against them.
I’ve never done that before but I wouldn’t hesitate to if I felt the need to. The primaries are open after all. Why should those of us who do not have an official party affiliation be so restricted? When it comes to the high profile elections it would amount to two political organizations determining who we get to vote for. As much as I like the idea of voting for who I like best in a general election, the fact is I vote against who I don’t want in office by voting for the person most likely to beat them, in most cases. That may not be best but that’s just how it works.
I understand your position though and it’s a noble one.