Reply #148: In this instance the State is basically a charity agency. [View All]

[ieoeja]

They are an agency that provides a free primary to all interested political parties. Does a political party have to participate? No. Of course not. They can hold their own primary, a caucus, or even nothing at all.

I believe Ross Perot's Reform Party nominated the presidential candidate at a national convention where all comers were welcome to participate. I *know* the Republican Party did this in Chicago in 1860.

Political parties in the United States are not gov't entities. They can set up any rules they want. The Florida Democratic Party could choose delegates based on horseshoe pitching contests. If the National Democratic Party approved this plan, there is NOTHING the State of Florida could do to prevent it. The State could help by providing shoes, pitches and referees. But again, the Party could accept or reject that assistance.