Downey letter: Primary vs caucus

One of the greatest parts of our electoral system is the presidential primaries. However, the system only works when you can maximize the amount of people involved.

While the idea of a caucus is decent on paper, in practice a caucus system only limits the number of voters. The long history of a caucus system needs to end now. A caucus requires a time commitment that many working voters cannot afford. Many students have jobs in retail and food service. These jobs do not allow for people to make it to the caucus in time. Voters with disabilities cannot make it into a crowded room and wait for hours as the process unfolds. Put simply, caucuses limit access to the ballot.

This system is not just undemocratic, but un-Democratic. The Democratic Party stands for equality, yet turns away those who cannot get out of work or cannot find someone to watch their children. Turning away those with disabilities, students and parents is a slap in the face to everything we as Democrats stand for, and I hope that the caucus system will go away to allow for a system where everyone can vote.

This story was originally published April 4, 2016 at 11:15 PM with the headline "Downey letter: Primary vs caucus."