A Tip from Across the Pond
Tony Blair seemed a little uncomfortable the other night when being interviewed by Jon Stewart. But Blair positively stunned me with shock and awe when he made a very simple statement of fact — that the length of a national election campaign in Britain is all of four weeks.
Four weeks. Stewart missed an opportunity for one of his patented laugh lines: Four weeks — you can do that?
Yes we can.
If we want to take the money out of politics, one of the first things we need to do is end our years-long election campaigns. They serve nobody's purposes but those of the media and wealthy special interests. Four weeks sounds just about right.
Comments
To be fair, as with here 4 weeks is the minimum period once the writ of election is proclaimed.
The fact is election mode ca precede that time by many months. The Howard/Rudd election campaign went on for over a year, as did the internal party campaigns to dislodge both Blair and Howard.
Posted by: Dennis Cartledge | September 20, 2008 04:33 PM
Thanks for that, Cart. But I would love to see a maximum period defined - 4 weeks, maybe 6. It would save a ton of money, and it would require voters and the media to focus more on issues than diversions like is so prevalent here in the US.
Posted by: abi | September 20, 2008 06:14 PM
In New Zealand it is illegal to display any election material whatsoever on election day. By convention, election day belongs to the voters.
Posted by: phil | September 22, 2008 05:48 PM
I like that idea, Phil. Only I'd like to expand it to include a ban on all posters, ads, etc for the entire month-long campaign. Political campaigns should consist of information about platforms and policies, not slogans and sound-bites and 30-second tv spots.
Posted by: abi | September 25, 2008 09:40 PM