American third parties have famously struggled due to onerous ballot restrictions. Some have attempted to overcome this disadvantage by nominating "big name" candidates. This often means running a former officeholder of one of the major parties as the Libertarians did with Bob Barr in 2008 and Gary Johnson this year.
Nick Canepa of the U-T San Diego wrote a column last week on the need to change the make up of the San Diego Padres’ front office, claiming whoever ends up owning the Padres should affect a clean sweep. Canepa often gets it right but this time he didn’t, because his idea is absurd.
In June 2010, California voters changed the election system in California by approving Proposition 14 (“Prop 14”), to instate a non-Partisan open primary system. The objective of Prop 14 was to produce more competitive elections and to give independent voters and other non-majority-party voters a say in the election. According to longtime Republican strategist, Allan Hoffenblum, it would reduce "meaningless runoffs."
The Public Policy Institute of California released a poll earlier this week showing that Governor Brown’s approval has dropped among likely voters.