That's what makes it so much fun. To witness a political race between five viable candidates, all within a few points of each other, is virtually without precedent in America. It's like participating in an election in a vibrant multiparty nation like, oh, say Belgium, for example. While this is all taking place in a "one-party town", in fact Democrat Philadelphia throbs with ethnic, class and purely factional divisions that have resulted in a very complex and entertaining election.
The mathematics of it are so bizarre that they alter the whole calculus of politics. In a two-way race, you must strive to appeal to 51% of the populace; in a (rare) three-way race, you can try to squeak by with 34%. But in a close five-way race, in theory all it takes is 21% of the vote! So a candidate doesn't have to dress up in majoritarian clothing. In practice, if he can articulate a message and inspire a team that can turn out a hard-core quarter of the voters ... that'll do it. -- Tony West From: Amara Rockar Subject: Re: [UC] Mayor's Race http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20070424-0817-primary-phillymayor.html This Associated Press story says: "The Democrat who comes in first in the May 15 primary wins the nomination outright; no runoff is required."
