# Jumping the gun on primary states **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 28, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925 "2011-09-28T20:38:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2011, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/21 "2011-10-02T09:21:38Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > How do you get the states to vote against their own interests by gifting other states with all the advantages of the earliest primaries? Until you can answer that question, no scheme means anything at all. Impose draconian penalties to candidates. If you place your name on the ballot in a state in violation of party rules, you are ineligible to receive votes at the convention. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/22 "2011-10-02T16:25:09Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Impose draconian penalties to candidates. If you place your name on the ballot in a state in violation of party rules, you are ineligible to receive votes at the convention. As noted in post #11, that’s the situation now. But nobody will enforce it. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/23 "2011-10-02T20:59:33Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > As noted in post #11, that’s the situation now. But nobody will enforce it. No. I meant no votes at all from any state at the convention. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2011, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/24 "2011-10-02T21:48:47Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > …A 7 week primary season and it’s over. Screw that. I’d prefer to see the entire _election_ season reduced to about 7 weeks like in Canada, the UK, Australia, etc. Never going to happen though. ---
**Author:** ![Bookkeeper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bookkeeper/32/281_2.png) [@Bookkeeper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bookkeeper)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/25 "2011-10-03T00:21:34Z")
But how could the Republicans, the party of “states’ rights”, allow the \*national \*party governing committee to ride roughshod over the rights of the \*state \*parties to run their primaries any way they want to? ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/26 "2011-10-03T20:20:37Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > There’s a very good chance we could see a _December_ primary or caucus this year. We’re getting closer. South Carolina has just moved their Republican primary to January 21. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/27 "2011-10-03T23:21:46Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > No. I meant no votes at all from any state at the convention. > [@Smitty](#): > > The Democrat rule is that states lose all their delegates, but they chose to ignore their own rules at the last convention and count the delegates from those states, anyway. Rules do not matter unless they are enforced. They **already exist**. But they’ll never be enforced. ---
**Author:** ![JoelUpchurch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@JoelUpchurch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoelUpchurch)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925/28 "2011-10-04T06:08:01Z")
Florida is the swing state with the biggest number of electoral votes. We should go first. I’d rather get the media attention before the election for a change. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jumping-the-gun-on-primary-states/597925.md?page=1)