Favorite son

Favorite son

A favorite son (or a favorite daughter) is a political term that can refer to two different types of politicians:

*A politician whose electoral appeal derives from his or her regional appeal, rather than his or her political views. For example, in the United States, presidential candidates usually win the support of their home states fairly easily.
*A member of a political party who is favored by the party leadership to assume a prominent role; for example: Paul Martin while Jean Chrétien was Prime Minister, in Canada; Gordon Brown while Tony Blair was Prime Minister, in United Kingdom.

In U.S. politics, nominating favorite sons was also used as a technique to send uncommitted delegations to a national convention of the Democratic or Republican Party. A popular or well-known governor or senator would be nominated, but was not a serious candidate. At some point during the convention, the favorite son would withdraw, freeing his delegates to support another candidate. The technique allowed senior leaders from the state to negotiate with candidates for preferential treatment.

The technique was widely used in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century. Since the days of "open conventions" were largely replaced in the 1960s with nationwide campaigns by candidates and binding primary elections, the Favorite Son technique of winning delegates' votes has fallen out of use.

Section 1 of Article Two of the United States Constitution requires an elector to the Electoral College to vote for a president and a vice president, at least one of whom must be from a different state than the elector. This requirement was added to prevent electors from voting for their favorite sons in presidential elections.

ee also

* List of major-party United States presidential candidates who lost their home state

References

http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.articleii.html#section1


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • favorite son — ☆ favorite son n. 1. a famous man honored and praised in his native city, district, etc. because of his achievements 2. a) a candidate favored by the political leaders of his own state, city, etc., as for presidential nomination b) a candidate at …   English World dictionary

  • favorite son — noun a United States politician favored mainly in his or her home state • Hypernyms: ↑campaigner, ↑candidate, ↑nominee * * * I. noun : a person favored as their candidate by the delegates of his state at the presidential nominating convention of… …   Useful english dictionary

  • favorite son — /feɪvərət ˈsʌn/ (say fayvuhruht sun) noun US Politics a candidate for national office proposed by a local or state delegation, with local rather than national support: Iowa s governor stood as a favorite son in the Democratic primaries for the… …  

  • favorite son — a candidate supported by his home state for President etc. We voted for him because he is the favorite son of our state …   Idioms and examples

  • Favorite Son (disambiguation) — Favorite son refers to a politician with strong regional or party support. Favorite Son may also refer to:* Favorite Son (film), a 1997 film * , an episode of the American TV series Star Trek: Voyager * Favorite Son (Yes, Dear episode), an… …   Wikipedia

  • Favorite Son (film) — Favorite Son [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0171317/] is an independent film that was shot entirely on location in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It stars American actors Louis Herthum [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0381043/] , Brad Hunt… …   Wikipedia

  • favorite son — {n.} A man supported by his home state for President. * /At a national convention, states often vote for their favorite sons first; then they change and vote for another man./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • favorite son — {n.} A man supported by his home state for President. * /At a national convention, states often vote for their favorite sons first; then they change and vote for another man./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • favorite\ son — noun A man supported by his home state for President. At a national convention, states often vote for their favorite sons first; then they change and vote for another man …   Словарь американских идиом

  • favorite son — fa′vorite son′ n. 1) gov a person nominated as a presidential candidate at a national political convention by the delegates from his or her home state 2) an eminent, successful man who is highly regarded in his hometown or state • Etymology:… …   From formal English to slang

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