Elections

When it comes to electing the President of the United States, the system could be improved by eliminating government contributions to campaigns, removing the electoral college, and shortening the primary season.

During elections, I believe candidates should be funded by external contributors and their own fundraising rather than by the federal government. This way, candidates can use as much money as they want. Money allows them to reach a greater extent of the American people. This is the problem with government funding; it sets limits to campaigning. The other problem is that this money comes from tax payers and a government already carrying a massive debt.

Also, the election system could be improved by removing the electoral college. The president should be elected by popular vote. With the electoral college, this is not always the case. For example, the Al Gore and George Bush election of 2000 is a testament to this. Al Gore won a greater percentage of votes than Bush (50,999,897 to 50,456,002). However, the system of the electoral college placed Bush into office which illustrates how the system can fail to reflect the views of the American people.

Finally, shortening the primary season may lead to more effect campaigns. For example, in the most recent Republican primary, there were multiple candidates that campaigned through the long haul. Narrowing down the nominee, Mitt Romney, has lasted almost until the Republican Convention. Because of this, the Republican party has not been unified or focused on a clear message. By shortening the primary season and choosing a nominee earlier, political parties can better focus their campaign and clearly project a message to the American people so that they are educated in casting their vote in November.

Polling

If I was Mitt Romney's political adviser, I would prompt the politician to focus his campaign on gaining independent votes but also working toward appealing to a broader range of Republicans and closing the gender gap with women voters.
In order to gain independent votes, Romney must find a way to appeal to those who typically fall in the middle of the political spectrum. Building a strong campaign in states that have been known to fall to both right and left, Romney sets a foundation to appeal to voters.

Also, it is pivotal that Romney begin to appeal to members of his own party; the conservative Republicans and other groups that have not illustrated a strong turnout during the primaries. These include Midwestern Republicans, as well as young and highly religious GOP members (Romney_#1). The challenge for Romney will be appealing toward his own party while still trying to gain support of more moderate voters.
Finally, Romney needs to gear up and start appealing toward women voters. Romney holds a strong conservative stance on many women's rights issues as he is pro-life and wants to limit Planned Parenthood. In doing so, he's put Obama in the lead when it comes to the majority of women. (Gender Gap...) Mitt Romney will need to find a way to appeal to women in order to gain the necessary votes from this demographic.

Romney_#1
Gender Gap Will Remain for Romney

Political Parties and Ideologies

After analyzing this graphic, it is clear that there are similarities that overlap between the left and right. One of the most apparent can be seen by looking at the percentage graph located under what each side "supports". Both sides have statistics on what percentage supports gay rights, abortion rights, war, tax-cuts, same-sex marriage, God, and unmarried sex. When it comes to gay rights, God, and unmarried sex, there is a relatively small margin between the two sides. In fact, there is at a most a 10% difference between the two on those issues. Also, under the "goal" of each side, the left states that they aim toward "personal freedom" and the right aims for "economic freedom". In sense, these are two interconnected stances. If you restrict economic freedom, then do you really have personal freedom? Ultimately, this illustrates the difficulty in adopting and implementing a politically theology that embodies every aspect of that side.