Not very much has been said about the forthcoming referendum but here is a letter from Michelle Bunker that was published in the Aiken Standard today. I do agree with the writer.
" Dear Editor,
Dr. Robert Botsch's article on the upcoming referendum to make City of Aiken elections non-partisan was both timely and informative.After weighing the arguments presented in the article, it appears that the wisest course would be to vote "no"on Tuesday. The impacts of non-partisan elections.ranging from lower voter turnout to limiting candidacies to the well-to-do , would cancel any advantages cited by the advocates of this questionable reform.
Clearly, party primaries help strengthen the quality of candidates presented to voters in the general election. The winners of contested primaries demonstrate their superior ability to appeal to large and committed groups of voters. The winner has, in effect, been vetted by his party as a sound, broadly acceptable candidate.In addition, party identification assists many voters in making decisions, particularly in elections where information is either scarce or there are many competing races. As a Republican, I know that the
candidate with the Republican label will , more often than not - be closer to my views than a candidate with a Democratic label. A Democrat would also find the partisan label to be , more often than not , a
useful shorthand in making decisions.
There are, of course, exceptions to these observations. But in general they hold true, and are important reasons why the upcoming referendum should be defeated by the voters this coming Tuesday."
Sincerely,
Michele Bunker
1458 Moultrie Drive
Aiken, SC 29803
(803) 645-6018
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