Candidates who don’t win on first convention ballot usually go on to lose
In 11 of the 18 conventions since the Civil War that went more than one ballot, the first-ballot leader ended up losing the nomination to someone else.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Election System & Voting Process
All
Election System & Voting Process
Publications
-
-
Voters have a dim view of primaries as a good way to pick the best candidate
Just 35% of voters say that the primaries have been a good way of determining the best- qualified nominees.
-
Contested presidential conventions, and why parties try to avoid them
There hasn’t been a seriously contested nominating convention in decades, and a look at history helps explain why: Candidates who needed multiple ballots to get nominated usually didn’t go on to win the White House.
-
Final Court Rulings: Public Equally Interested in Voting Rights, Gay Marriage
Overview A new poll finds that the public is as interested in the Supreme Court’s upcoming ruling on the Voting Rights Act as in its long-awaited decisions on same-sex marriage. Roughly a third of Americans (35% each) say they are very interested in both how the court will rule on whether parts of the Voting […]
-
Broad Support for Photo ID Voting Requirements
Overview Proposals to require voters to show photo identification before being allowed to vote draw overwhelming support. By 77% to 20%, voters favor a requirement that those voting be required to show photo ID. Opinion about this is little changed from six years ago, when 80% of voters supported voter photo ID requirements. Several states […]
