Strategies for party building will look different depending on which of six distinct party systems you're working with. Some are fertile ground for independent politics.
if you think political parties are the worst parties, consider sortition! civic assemblies, an instance of sortition, offer a way to work around both parties and career politicians.
Our city in Minnesota, Duluth, is one party DFL, with non-partisan candidates for everything except state and federal races. However, left candidates still generally seek the DFL endorsement, because the local DFL is controlled by the progressive wing. So even our chapter's DSA candidates seek that endorsement. As party bodies, the local units (we have two) can do things with money the chapter can't. If a candidate is flush, but faces no challenger, they can donate back to the local body. They local body can then spend it on a flyer or billboard or something in support of one of our candidates. Also, the DFL still has positive brand recognition for older voters. Every single one of our elected socialist members (7 and counting) have been both DSA and DFL endorsed (5 city councilors total with 2 currently, 1 county commissioner, and 1 state senator. We will gain a state rep this year, and maybe another county commissioner).
Am I correct in thinking that in your typology a (congressional) district qualifies as a Competitive System (category 6) simply by *not* qualifying for any of the other categories? Is there no way a "labor left" strategy could be viable in this 30 percent of the country?
It's not a catch-all bucket. Competitive congressional districts are districts a) in states without fusion voting and b) where an independent candidate running in the general would be a spoiler.
I'm not saying there can't be a left or labor electoral strategy in these places. I am saying that in these places the classic argument for why the left and labor have to work within the Democratic Party is strongest:
"These districts are the least hospitable to *independent* left-labor politics — the kind of places where the Left’s electoral strategy, as long as elections are conducted without proportional representation, *will have to run through the Democratic Party*."
if you think political parties are the worst parties, consider sortition! civic assemblies, an instance of sortition, offer a way to work around both parties and career politicians.
Our city in Minnesota, Duluth, is one party DFL, with non-partisan candidates for everything except state and federal races. However, left candidates still generally seek the DFL endorsement, because the local DFL is controlled by the progressive wing. So even our chapter's DSA candidates seek that endorsement. As party bodies, the local units (we have two) can do things with money the chapter can't. If a candidate is flush, but faces no challenger, they can donate back to the local body. They local body can then spend it on a flyer or billboard or something in support of one of our candidates. Also, the DFL still has positive brand recognition for older voters. Every single one of our elected socialist members (7 and counting) have been both DSA and DFL endorsed (5 city councilors total with 2 currently, 1 county commissioner, and 1 state senator. We will gain a state rep this year, and maybe another county commissioner).
Am I correct in thinking that in your typology a (congressional) district qualifies as a Competitive System (category 6) simply by *not* qualifying for any of the other categories? Is there no way a "labor left" strategy could be viable in this 30 percent of the country?
It's not a catch-all bucket. Competitive congressional districts are districts a) in states without fusion voting and b) where an independent candidate running in the general would be a spoiler.
I'm not saying there can't be a left or labor electoral strategy in these places. I am saying that in these places the classic argument for why the left and labor have to work within the Democratic Party is strongest:
"These districts are the least hospitable to *independent* left-labor politics — the kind of places where the Left’s electoral strategy, as long as elections are conducted without proportional representation, *will have to run through the Democratic Party*."
Does that make sense?