The Presidential Nominating Process, or how to be elected in three easy steps.

1. The Presidential Nominating Process, or how to be elected in three easy steps.

2. So you want to be the President?

3. First, always remember the Three things political parties want: To Win, To Control and To Influence.

4. But then you need to have a plan, ‘cause it’s Gonna be a journey

5. Your journey begins with a single step, called the Invisible Primary

6. So what is the Invisible Primary The Invisible Primary is the beginning stage when potential candidates begin exploring their chances. They: 1) get their name out as someone interested and qualified; 2) build cred; 3)meet potential donors; and, 4) get organized.

7. WAKEUP! So, when do I start? Right after the last election

8. So, I’ve got my name out, some potential donors, a staff. What am I forgetting? Oh, Yeah. I gotta get on the ballot. Duh.

9. In most states, a candidate needs to get a specific number of voters to sign a petition to be placed on the ballot. This gives a big advantage to major party candidates.

10. Sometimes this causes problems tHese four MESSED UP AND GOT SMACKED DOWN BY HIM Judge John A. Gibney

11. So now the fun begins. The next thing on the to-do list is the Iowa Straw Poll. Which is really a beauty contest. Last year’s winner was…

13. So What is going on here: People are “trying on” the candidates. They are looking at: Debate performance- see Rick Perry Announced positions Consistency Demeanor

14. And then, the Iowa Caucuses January 3, 2012

15. So what’s a caucus, I hear you cry! Well, a caucus is a private meeting of party leaders where they discuss and speechify about the candidates. It’s a process that begins on the local level and moves up to the state. 19 states use caucuses. It was the historic method of selecting candidates.

16. So why don’t all states use them? The problem was that caucuses were considered undemocratic and corrupt and dominated by men who looked like this…

18. Some Iowa Caucus Pics

19. But these problems have been corrected. And the winner out of Iowa was…

20. Mitt Romney, by 8 Votes

21. Rick Santorum, by 34 Votes

22. The First casualty

23. New Hampshire

24. But, Dad, we need to stop…. • So, did you know that the word “can” originated from a 1920’s government health program giving large cans to rural residents to use as toilets where digging outhouses was difficult.

25. New Hampshire uses a direct primary, in which party members select people to run in the general election.

26. There are two types of primaries • Open Primaries: • Any one can vote in the primary, regardless of party affiliation, BUT you can only vote in ONE primary. This ain’t Chicago. • Virginia is open. • Closed Primaries: • Only registered members of the party may vote in the primary.

27. The no surprise winner

28. The Next Two Casualties

29. And now onto S. Carolina Okay, this is Iceland.

30. And the Winna in S. Carolina!

32. The next big primary event is March 6th, aka “Super Tuesday”, where 10 states, inc. Virginia hold primaries and caucuses.

33. So two things can be learned here. First, we have a race. And second…

34. The job of the early states, like that of wolves, is to cull the weak

35. And once culled, the strong go on to the Convention.

36. There are also State Nominating Conventions, where local party chapters send members to a county nominating convention. From the county convention, candidates for local office are picked. Also, delegates are sent to a statewide convention to select statewide candidates. Presidential candidates aren’t involved.

37. Nomination Cycle Review