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The Presidency Reconsidered:
Should We Change How We Nominate and Elect Our Chief Executives?
On April 16, 2008, the Center for Politics hosted a lively discussion on the presidential primaries, the conventions and election process as they relate to the Constitution.
CLICK HERE for podcast audio of the event!
Participants: (as pictured, left to right)
- L. Douglas Wilder, Mayor of Richmond, VA and former governor
- Lowell P. Weicker, Jr., former CT governor and U.S. Senator
- John H. Sununu, former NH governor and chief of staff to President George H.W. Bush
- Larry J. Sabato, moderator, Director of the Center for Politics
Each of the 21st Century's presidential elections has seen many constitutional issues come to the forefront of public consciousness. Some have suggested that the process of being nominated by the parties is in need of review. Should we attempt to alter this process by establishing regional primaries or some other system, or are we better served leaving the process to the discretion of each individual state? What is the role of the superdelegates, and does this process work as it was intended? Should anything be done to prioritize the outcome of the popular vote in the nomination process and/or the general election? Are there changes that might help build greater confidence in our system of elections for more Americans? Should we continue to disallow non-native born citizens from running for president? These topics and more will be debated this spring at The Presidency Reconsidered.
Last fall the Center for Politics hosted a discussion about the Constitution at a day-long gathering titled the National Constitutional Convention. The Presidency Reconsidered, held at the University of Virginia, continued this timely discussion.
About the Panelists
John H. Sununu served two years as President George H.W. Bush's chief of staff, after serving three consecutive terms as governor of New Hampshire. As governor, Sununu chaired the Coalition of Northeastern Governors, the Republican Governors Association and the National Governors Association. For much of the 1990s, Sununu co-hosted CNN's Crossfire political news and analysis program. He is currently president of JHS Associates, Ltd. and is a partner in Trinity International Partners, a private financial firm.
Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. served one term in the U.S. House and then three consecutive terms in the U.S. Senate representing the state of Connecticut, during which time he served on the Senate Watergate Committee. In 1990, Weicker was elected governor of Connecticut as an independent, defeating opponents from both major parties. He is currently the president of the Board of Directors of Trust for America's Health, and a member of the Board of Directors for World Wrestling Entertainment.
L. Douglas Wilder is the first African American to be elected governor of a U.S. state. Elected in 1989 as a Democrat, Wilder previously served a term as lieutenant governor and five terms in the state senate. He was briefly a candidate for president in 1992, but withdrew in order to focus on the governorship. Wilder was appointed chairman of Governor Mark Warner's Commission on Efficiency and Effectiveness in 2002 and also that year, co-chaired the Wilder-Bliley Charter Commission that advocated the at-large election of mayor for the city of Richmond. Wilder was elected mayor in 2004.
Larry J. Sabato is the founder and director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics. The author of over twenty books and countless essays on the American political process, Sabato bridges the gap between the ivory tower and the real world on issues of critical importance to American democracy and the challenges facing our political process. Dubbed "the Dr. Phil of American Politics" by Washingtonian magazine, his latest book is A MORE PERFECT CONSTITUTION: 23 Proposals to Revitalize our Constitution and Make America a Fairer Country (Walker & Co., 2007).
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Copyright © 2008 U.Va. Center for Politics. All rights reserved.
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