Draft (politics)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In elections in the United States, political drafts are used to encourage or compel a certain person to enter a political race, by demonstrating a significant groundswell of support for the candidate. A write-in campaign may also be considered a draft campaign.
Contents |
[edit] Political history of draft movements
[edit] The movement to draft Dwight D. Eisenhower
America has seen many draft movements in its history. Maybe the most notable draft campaign was that of former five-star general Dwight D. Eisenhower. Draft Eisenhower movements sprung up in both the Democratic and Republican parties in 1948 and again during 1951. Eisenhower did his best to ignore them.
In late December, then President Harry S. Truman wrote to ask General Eisenhower, "I wish you would let me know what you intend to do", and General Eisenhower replied, "I do not feel that I have any duty to seek a political nomination." Soon after, General Eisenhower reconciled his commitment not to seek a political office by taking the position that he would be personally compelled to respond if called to a higher duty.
During the Democratic National Convention in 1952, Adlai Stevenson was drafted as a nominee, in spite of his earlier statements about his lack of a desire to run for office, and eventually overcame Estes Kefauver as a favorite of the delegates after three rounds of voting.
Henry Cabot Lodge forced the issue by entering Eisenhower in the New Hampshire Republican primary without Eisenhower's authorization. General Eisenhower won all the Republican delegates and soundly defeated Senator Robert Taft of Ohio (who had campaigned intensively in the state) by a vote of 50% to 38%.
After the primary win, Eisenhower told a reporter, "Any American who would have that many other Americans pay him that compliment would be proud or he would not be an American." Convinced of being called to a higher duty, he announced his candidacy the next day.
[edit] The movement to draft Barry Goldwater
Also, in the early 1960s two volunteers started a movement to draft Barry Goldwater, an unlikely and unwilling candidate back then. Goldwater initially gave such remarks as "I'm not a candidate. And I'm not going to be. I have no intention of running for the Presidency", and "'Draft' nothing. I told you I'm not going to run." However, the effort eventually convinced Goldwater and won him the Republican nomination in 1964 in the face of the self-financed campaign of Nelson Rockefeller, the ridicule of the national press, and the refusal by Goldwater to run.
[edit] Recent political draft movements
Most recently, the candidacy of General Wesley Clark, came from result of a draft. Clark, who had recently retired from the military and took a job as a CNN military analyst, had no intention of running until multiple "Draft Clark" sites came up on the web urging Clark to run. Over about a two month period the draft became a nationwide effort due to TV coverage and the use of the internet. In September 2003, Clark said he would make up his mind on whether to accept the draft or not in the near future. Soon after that statement, Clark announced his candidacy in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, citing that he was pulled in by the people to run for the presidency.[1]
There is a current draft campaign for former Vice President Al Gore. While Gore has said repeatedly that he does not plan to run, he has not ruled it out.[2]
Also worthy of notation are the unsuccessful draft campaigns of Gary Hart (former Colorado Senator) and Steve Jobs (Founder & CEO of Apple Computer), and (in 1995) there was a notable attempt to draft retired four-star general (and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff) Colin Powell for the Republican presidential nomination in 1996.
Currently, a group of citizens is trying to draft Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for president (going so far as to buy television and radio time in Iowa, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and Florida, and even roadside billboards). Though Dr. Rice has publicly declined to run, the groundswell of support for this cause has continued to gain notoriety in national and international media. The most prominent "Draft Rice" group, called Americans for Rice, claims more than 4000 active members in the U.S. and abroad, and is already showing up at major events, organizing local cell groups, and making the preparations to put Dr. Rice's name on the ballot in 2008. Another group, The United States Students Committee, or TUSSC, has set their ambitions on gaining support among college and high school students for the same cause.[3][4]
