Alabama Politics in
Doc’s Political Parlor
& Home of Lawn Mower Repair

I know the idea of reading the rules for the upcoming Presidential Primary in Alabama sounds like a cure for insomnia for some but for a political junkie like myself they are always an interesting read.

The rules and of course the date for the Presidential Preference Primary in Alabama are different this year than in the past. I cannot speak to the rules for the Democrat Primary because they have a very different presidential selection process from the my party. Maybe someone from the Democrats can shed light on their changes.

One big change is the rules for whether or not a presidential candidate qualifies for any delegates at all. In the past a candidate who garnered 15% of the vote in the primary would receive delegate representative from Alabama. Under the new rules a candidate must receive at least 20% of the vote to receive any delegates from Alabama to the Republican National Convention. Currently with the polls showing Guiliani and Thompson being the only two candidates receiving more than 20% of the vote then they could garner a total of 40% of the vote and receive 100% of the delegates. I am not saying this is bad but it does provide for an interesting dynamic. Yes, for those of you on this blog who wish to throw stones now at my early support for John McCain, who will not likely get any delegates in Alabama, now is your chance to chime in!

Another rule change is that is a candidate who receives 50% of the vote or more wins all of Alabama’s delegates. With the polls currently the way they are, it looks like this is very unlikely.

It is rare that Alabama has any kind of excitement in the presidential election process so these boring rule changes should actually make for a fun February primary.

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