Political Parties and People’s Voices

Increasingly, people are turning out to vote AGAINST the other party. They aren’t voting with confidence that their candidate will create a better future. They are voting because they think the other side is worse and even evil.

When Minnesota Republicans and Democrats meet later this month at their state conventions in Duluth and Rochester, they will do what generations of delegates always have done. They will endorse candidates and pass issue platforms that resonate with lofty principles but are short on practical solutions.

What the delegates won’t do is spend much time on the issue that needs the most focus and is within their power to remedy. In an era of rapidly changing technology, communications and social interaction, the Minnesota conventions should put political parties in the lead of reforming a political system that no longer works.

The parties and their conventions continue to operate as if people – the voters – like and trust them. They don’t. According to Pew Research, only 4% of U.S. adults say the political system is working extremely or very well; another 23% say it is working somewhat well. Nearly two-thirds – 63% – say they have little or no confidence at all in the future of the U.S. political system.

Even record voter turnout in the last three presidential elections is evidence of the public’s dislike of politics, politicians and parties. Increasingly, people are turning out to vote AGAINST the other party. They aren’t voting with confidence that their candidate will create a better future. They are voting because they think the other side is worse and even evil.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that in this environment, the endorsements Minnesota Democrats and Republicans bestow on candidates are losing their value with the larger voting population. Democrats have not endorsed a non-incumbent candidate for governor who was able to both survive the primary and win the office. Republicans haven’t fared better over the same years. Only two people have won the GOP endorsement for governor and went on to be elected to the state’s top office.

Understand the delegates’ priorities, though. They aren’t selecting candidates who have the best ideas for the future. Delegates sometimes aren’t even picking candidates because they think they can win. Convention-goers endorse candidates with whom they share an ideology, and dogma is where convention battle lines increasingly are drawn.

A large faction of Republican delegates, perhaps the majority, will demand their candidates offer unwavering loyalty to Donald Trump and MAGA. Michele Tafoya may have the best chance of giving Minnesota Republicans a U.S. Senate seat for the first time in nearly two decades. Yet, her 2022 comment that Trump’s politics are “messy” will be a huge hurdle for the many delegates who harbor more petty grievances than common sense.

On the other side of the partisan aisle, the Democratic Socialists of America are doing to the Democratic Party what the Tea Party did to Republicans 20 years ago. The DSA has two jurisdictions in Minnesota where they have outsized influence – the Minneapolis City Council and the DFL convention. Neither reflects the realities of what most Minnesotans want from their government.

In spite of these internal divisions (or maybe because of them) the political reforms that most Minnesotans want will receive little attention at the conventions. Yes, the parties will offer lofty and very different takes on government corruption, campaign finance reform and, given current headlines, gerrymandering, but the meaningful proposals to reform a political system that has lost the confidence of most voters will get short shrift. And woe to the candidate, Democrat or Republican, who dares to propose any change that would break the hold the two parties have on the system.

There are many ideas for reforming the political process to make it more transparent and inclusive. Parties could offer multiple endorsements at their conventions. Primaries could be non-partisan with the top candidates moving on to the general election regardless of party. General elections could be conducted with ranked choice voting. And drawing new boundaries for legislative and congressional seats should be done by independent commissions. Voters should choose their representatives; politicians should not be able to choose their voters.

None of that likely will consume much of the delegates’ time at the Minnesota conventions. Parties resist reform because they can. The powers that control the parties and write the rules of politics are incumbent office holders and special interests, including the big donors. Those who won their offices under today’s rules have little incentive to promote reforms that could pose challenges to their power. In fact, in one of the few displays of legislative bipartisanship in recent years, Minnesota Democrats and Republicans have joined to pass laws that make it harder for independent and third party candidates to mount successful campaigns.

None of this is to say that conventions should be ignored or political parties abandoned. They have value. It is worthwhile to listen to what the party activists meeting in the conventions have to say about the candidates. It also is important to hear what the candidates who don’t win endorsement have to say to these intensely partisan delegates. Are those who win the parties’ backing the best leaders for these challenging times or are they endorsed because of ideology?

The reality is that whatever the conventions decide, Minnesota voters have the final say, not just in deciding who wins the General Election but in the Primary Election. In fact, in the current system, there is no better catalyst for change than the primaries. The primaries give voice and power to all voters. It is a key part of the political process that respects the independent streak of Minnesotans.

The Primary Election gives every voter the opportunity to accept or reject the candidates chosen by convention delegates. But to be heard, you have to vote, and primaries are notoriously low-turnout affairs.

That dynamic should change especially in a year as important to Minnesotans as 2026. Voters in November will elect a new governor, a U.S. senator and eight members of the U.S. House and all 201 legislators. Eligible voters can vote in any party’s primary. There is no party registration required. Independents can vote in any primary and those dissatisfied with the candidates their traditional party has put forward can vote in the primary of a party with more attractive candidates. While voters can only vote in the primary of a single party, people aren’t required to vote for every office. A voter can cast a positive vote for one favored candidate and let the other races play out as they may. Voters are not bound to vote in November for the party they chose in the primary.

The conventions will be interesting theater and may even provide useful information about candidates. Ultimately, though, the decisions for 2026 are too important to leave only to party delegates.

The primary is Aug. 11. Early voting by mail or in-person begins June 26. Be heard.