Alienation, autonomy, and ideology
These are posts on elections from the blog Base and Superstructure. Topics include international elections, American elections, and local Iowa elections. There’s a particular focus on describing and explaining leftist electoral results.
We have two at-large city council seats on the ballot in Iowa City in November 2023. For anyone who doesn’t know this, all the candidates go on the same ballot and the top 2 candidates win. Voters pick 2 from the total list of names.
Let’s talk about how it’s going to go down.
The DSA is full of divides and false dichotomies. So let’s try to intervene against some of that. Some in the DSA world divide the org’s electoral strategy into two possible routes. The first one amounts to collaboration with – and capitulation to – the Democratic Party and its interests. And the second is a Bolshevik inspired strategy called ‘Tribunes of the People.’ In that latter strategy, a core of united DSA elected officials stick to the party line and agitate the working class into a political force.
Various DSA caucuses, usually obscure and sectarian ones, promote this division. But in light of actions from The Squad and majority factions within the DSA, we’ve seen it erupt in larger DSA blocs and spaces. Such as the recent public event put on by several DSA caucuses.
I share many of the critiques of the DSA ‘majority’ faction’s electoral strategy. That strategy amounts to a shortcut to build on-paper membership in the short term without building a sustainable organization that can win power in the medium or long term.
But I’m hardly more impressed by the Tribunes of the People strategy. Let’s talk about that.
With the 2022 election a couple of days behind us, it’s time to take a look. And the look runs parallel to last time: the GOP blew it.
They more or less had a House and a Senate majority in the bag. And while they probably (barely) managed the former, they’ve probably missed the latter again. In most parts of the country, they performed worse than the polls suggested and far worse than they could have done with better candidates and messaging.
I won’t say much else about national elections in the rest of this post. But read on for ballot initiatives and the state of things in Iowa!
Here we are again: another election. Like all other recent elections, this one, of course, is the most important in our lifetime.
I guess that with another one around the corner, it’s time for a new round of election predictions! And as much as we had to discuss Trump in 2020, he remains a big factor in this one, too. Since 2015, we haven’t been able to discuss U.S. electoral politics without placing Trump near the center.
Imagine traveling back in time to 2008 and telling someone that.
As we approach the 2022 election, it’s worth remembering that elections aren’t just about candidates and offices. Voters also choose whether to adopt various issue-based ballot initiatives. Pundits (and voters) often ignore these initiatives.
Let’s take a look at 4 of these ballot initiatives for leftists to watch. I’ll point out that the outset that there are a few abortion initiatives on the ballot in certain states. California and Michigan, for example, have initiatives on the ballot that would guarantee reproductive freedom if enacted.
But I’m going to set these aside for the moment. They’re important, but they’re already getting a fair bit of attention in light of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Instead, I’ll look at initiatives many leftists probably haven’t noticed.
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