Are these really the best candidates you could come up with?
I don’t remember the exact words, but there is a saying that people who want power are exactly the ones who shouldn’t get it. By that logic, any system where people compete for the power is dysfunctional, because first it filters the candidates by criteria you probably wouldn’t approve of… and only then allows you to pick among the remaining options that often all suck.
Not being an American, I have no idea who Biden is… he seems like some generic non-Trump. But by the logic of the system, he must be someone who defeated his competitors (within the Democratic Party). This is not an ability that would make anyone like him. I mean, if you prefer Republicans, you won’t vote for him anyway; and if you prefer Democrats, then “being able to defeat Democrats” is not exactly the thing you want more of. Nonetheless, this is a precondition for getting to the final round. Being able to defeat people on your side is more important than being able to defeat people on the other side, because if you fail at the former, you won’t get a chance to do the latter.
A different voting system—for example one where anyone can give a vote to any number of candidates, and the one with most votes wins—would deliver a different kind of candidates. (Not necessarily better; the new system could have new weaknesses.)
I don’t remember the exact words, but there is a saying that people who want power are exactly the ones who shouldn’t get it. By that logic, any system where people compete for the power is dysfunctional, because first it filters the candidates by criteria you probably wouldn’t approve of… and only then allows you to pick among the remaining options that often all suck.
Not being an American, I have no idea who Biden is… he seems like some generic non-Trump. But by the logic of the system, he must be someone who defeated his competitors (within the Democratic Party). This is not an ability that would make anyone like him. I mean, if you prefer Republicans, you won’t vote for him anyway; and if you prefer Democrats, then “being able to defeat Democrats” is not exactly the thing you want more of. Nonetheless, this is a precondition for getting to the final round. Being able to defeat people on your side is more important than being able to defeat people on the other side, because if you fail at the former, you won’t get a chance to do the latter.
A different voting system—for example one where anyone can give a vote to any number of candidates, and the one with most votes wins—would deliver a different kind of candidates. (Not necessarily better; the new system could have new weaknesses.)