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Enshrining the two party system in law is something that even the current power system in the US hasn't managed. By doing "top two to general" you'd be converti

Enshrining the two party system in law is something that even the current power system in the US hasn't managed. By doing "top two to general" you'd be converting a de-facto duopoly into an actual duopoly. At that point we might as well just skip the entire election process to save money and let the parties work out a power sharing agreement where it alternates every so many years.

karatinversion 5y ago
I don't think so – France uses this exact model, and their party system has just in the last 15 years or so transitioned out both of the former top two parties (PS and LR). If anything, I would expect this model to reduce duopoly. An unpopular republican might be overtaken by a candidate from the libertarians in the first round, giving them a shot at victory which they could hardly get if the ghost of "wasted votes" on third-parties was haunting them.
spaced-out 5y ago
> Enshrining the two party system in law is something that even the current power system in the US hasn't managed. By doing "top two to general" you'd be converting a de-facto duopoly into an actual duopoly. Just the opposite, the top two candidates, regardless of what party they're from will appear on the ballot, this would allow people to vote for a 3rd party candidate in the primary without worrying about "wasting" their vote. If the 3rd party candidate is one of the top two they'll appear in the general, if not that voter can still pick the lesser of two evils in the general.
- sidewndr46 5y ago
  The US government at all levels is controlled by two parties. While neither side is going to just hand over control to the other, they certainly aren't going to vote in a system that would allow a 3rd party to emerge. There is no way such a system would ever be allowed to produce a ballot without a Republican and Democrat on it. If you're not on the ballot, you don't get elected. Full stop. There would be all sorts of bizarre measures and "tests" added to such a system before it was ever in place to make sure that only the existing parties would ever be on the ballot.
  - spaced-out 5y ago
    I guess we could just throw our hands up and say nothing will ever change, but I think things could change, and a great first step would be a grassroots push to adopt voting systems which make it easier for 3rd parties to break in.
    - sidewndr46 5y ago
      If you choose to do that, it is your own decision. I'm not going to sit here and pretend that "top two to general" will become anything other than "Republican or Democrat" in America. I was already coerced into reading textbooks by the state that told me the US has a "two party system" and that when you vote you can choose between Republican or Democrat. This is obviously propaganda, but I'm not going to support a move to a system that makes propaganda a reality. It's incredibly dystopian.

karatinversion 5y ago

I don't think so – France uses this exact model, and their party system has just in the last 15 years or so transitioned out both of the former top two parties (PS and LR). If anything, I would expect this model to reduce duopoly. An unpopular republican might be overtaken by a candidate from the libertarians in the first round, giving them a shot at victory which they could hardly get if the ghost of "wasted votes" on third-parties was haunting them.

spaced-out 5y ago

> Enshrining the two party system in law is something that even the current power system in the US hasn't managed. By doing "top two to general" you'd be converting a de-facto duopoly into an actual duopoly. Just the opposite, the top two candidates, regardless of what party they're from will appear on the ballot, this would allow people to vote for a 3rd party candidate in the primary without worrying about "wasting" their vote. If the 3rd party candidate is one of the top two they'll appear in the general, if not that voter can still pick the lesser of two evils in the general.

sidewndr46 5y ago
The US government at all levels is controlled by two parties. While neither side is going to just hand over control to the other, they certainly aren't going to vote in a system that would allow a 3rd party to emerge. There is no way such a system would ever be allowed to produce a ballot without a Republican and Democrat on it. If you're not on the ballot, you don't get elected. Full stop. There would be all sorts of bizarre measures and "tests" added to such a system before it was ever in place to make sure that only the existing parties would ever be on the ballot.
- spaced-out 5y ago
  I guess we could just throw our hands up and say nothing will ever change, but I think things could change, and a great first step would be a grassroots push to adopt voting systems which make it easier for 3rd parties to break in.
  - sidewndr46 5y ago
    If you choose to do that, it is your own decision. I'm not going to sit here and pretend that "top two to general" will become anything other than "Republican or Democrat" in America. I was already coerced into reading textbooks by the state that told me the US has a "two party system" and that when you vote you can choose between Republican or Democrat. This is obviously propaganda, but I'm not going to support a move to a system that makes propaganda a reality. It's incredibly dystopian.