After attending my local Republican Party caucus on Super Tuesday this year, I was blown away by how disorganized and messy it was.
The process is opaque and undemocratic, excluding countless people from voting who couldn’t attend the caucus in person. There weren’t enough ballots for voters to fill out in my room, so we ended up writing names down on little pieces of paper. The fact that one of the two major political parties in the most powerful country on Earth is choosing its candidate for president by having people crammed into classrooms scribble a name on a torn off piece of paper is astounding. There was nothing to prevent someone from submitting multiple scraps of paper.
The caucus system is not a sign of good governance. Many people who caucused with me complained about the process, including supporters of both Trump and Haley. The caucus system should be done away with in favor of a direct primary that is truly reflective of the will of the people rather than maintain an antiquated and sloppy system that satisfies no one.
Daniel Sloan
Salt Lake City