The Imperfect Primary:
Oddities, Biases, and Strengths of US Presidential Nomination Politics
by Barbara Norrander
JK522 .N67 2010
New Arrivals, 2nd floor
Just in case you haven’t been paying attention to the news or have your phone number on the do-not-call list [and in theory missing the robo-calls], there’s the elections going on today (make sure to vote!). I’ve personally never really understood the spring elections, so this week’s featured title is especially helpful for me. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it might help you too.
Norrander, professor at the University Arizona, knows a few things about elections, specifically presidential nominations, as she has been writing on the topic for several decades. She has taken this knowledge and understanding of a seemingly bizarre system to enlighten everyone else about this particular aspect of politics. The author covers a brief history of the preliminary race before the big one, other ways in which a president could be selected, as well as a discussion of the fairness of the current system. This book offers a quick and dirty explanation, less than one hundred and thirty pages, of how and why things work the way that they do in choosing the challengers for the highest political post in the United States.
