Electoral Challenges and Opportunities

Arizona State is home to senators John McCain and Jeff Flake. It is widely seen as being a Republican Party stronghold. However, the political map has been changing considerably over the years. By July 2017, 34.63% of all registered voters were Republican whereas 30.27% were affiliated to the Democratic Party (Iyengar and Westwood 693).

Whichever the case, the state still remains largely inclined towards the Trump-led Republican Party. Jeff Flake, one of the senators has however been vocal against the leadership of Trump and has criticized him on a myriad of occasions.

Jeff Flake or simply Flake is an American politician who is currently a member of the Republican Party. Since the year 2013, he has served as Junior US Senator from the State of Arizona alongside John McCain who was a presidential nominee in the year 2008. Flake is one of the most vocal Senators in the country. He is most notably highly regarded because of his rebuke of the partisan nature of American politics (Craig and Richeson 1192).

Whereas he was elected on a Republican ticket, he has persistently criticized the leadership style of president Trump on a number of occasions recently. The senator is therefore quite likely to face a major challenge in the primaries. In most instances, party primaries are related to loyalty. Those who are loyal to the most dominant party have their way. In a region where the Republican Party commands the most respect, Flake might have a hard time simply due to the fact that he has been critical of the leadership of the party (Iyengar and Westwood 696).

Chances are that he might not get to the ballot in 2018 on a Republican ticket but maybe as an independent. America, just like any other part of the world is largely controlled by parties. People who are strongly affiliated to either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party usually have an easy way into political positions. As noted earlier, Arizona is a Republican stronghold. People who follow the party are most likely gain electoral positions. The president even criticized him at a recent event for being weak even while before his electorate (Craig and Richeson 1192).

His ideas about border and security have also come under intense scrutiny from President Trump. As usual, Trump has a word to say to the leaders who do not toe his line. Basically, there are lots of hurdles that Jeff Flake faces even as he seeks to retain his position in the upcoming elections of 2018. His ideas might not make any sense in the current political climate. Notably, he is of the idea that if both Republicans and Democrats can work together, partisanship will end. Such a premise will also ensure that more legislation moves forward expeditiously (Iyengar and Westwood 696).

Whereas he is right in the context of this claim, it might not be well received by party loyalists. They would want to follow what the leaders have to say and not what they necessarily stand for. It is important to appreciate the fact that Jeff Flake has been one of the most vocal critics of Trump's administration even though he is a member of his party. He therefore recognizes that he has a major task to undertake in getting the votes in the upcoming 2018 elections. That is why at some point he argued that if he wanted an easy path through the primaries, he could have lined up with where the president currently is (Iyengar and Westwood 698).

He claims that he wants a challenge and he will truly get it even during the primaries. That is the time he will recognize the importance of party loyalty. As opposed to party affiliations as he currently is, Flake asserts that elected officials all elected officials just have to do what is right regardless of party affiliations. He acknowledges that it would be a tough task to go through the primaries and the eventual election but he is always up to the task ahead. Perhaps these might be seen as the kicks of a dying horse (Craig and Richeson 1194).

Chances are that he does not just want to appear illegitimate but he already knows inside him that he has lost the fight. In a country where parties reign in politics, individual viewpoints might not be very outstanding. Flake's independent nature is mirrored by one John McCain. He is the kind of a leader who can speak his mind and not have any fear of being ridiculed or belittled. In that regard therefore, questions have been asked as to whether those Republicans who criticize Trump can have their way in the upcoming elections. The fact is that name recognition is one of the main factors that play into the elections in the United States and other parts of the world (Craig and Richeson 1194).

The name Jeff Flake might not ring a bell in many people's minds. Therefore, unless he chooses to shelter himself under the umbrella of the Republican Party, he might not succeed at the end of the day. Those who are opposed to the party affiliation debate like Flake argue that it is more important to stand on principle than just hearsay. At times it is necessary to get rid of the political party tag and learn to work with the other side for the benefit of the general populace. In politics, there will always be push and pull effects almost everywhere (Madison 43).

Someone just has to do the best that they can. For instance, Flake has been insistent that he would like to work with President Trump. On the other hand, the president has been trying to find a challenger who will unseat the Arizonan senator. At times someone might be made to think that Senator Jeff Flake does not seem to understand where he stands at times. In one television interview, Flake asserted that he would like to work with President Trump when he is right and also challenge him whenever he is wrong. This shows the undecided side of this senator. In that regard therefore, it is not really certain to figure out what side of the political divide he owes allegiance to (Madison 45). It is already clear that he is a critic of Trump but again he is not on the Democratic Party side. There is a lot of debate that is likely to come up in the next few months.

To conclude, Jeff Flake is similar to a politician reading his own political eulogy. Any chances of him getting back to the Congress as a senator are very few. Over the years, the two main parties in the United States have had the majority representations in the august house. Therefore, it seems that people who do not owe allegiance to parties are usually left out. Whereas Flake argues that he is still working with Trump, the party leader on the other hand does not recognize him at all. It would be hard to win this fight against the elite. It is highly unlikely that Flake would go through the political party primaries in the first case.

Works Cited

Craig, Maureen A., and Jennifer A. Richeson. "On the precipice of a majority-minority America: Perceived status threat from the racial demographic shift affects White Americans political ideology." Psychological Science 25.6 (2014): 1189-1197.

Iyengar, Shanto, and Sean J. Westwood. "Fear and loathing across party lines: New evidence on group polarization." American Journal of Political Science 59.3 (2015): 690-707.

Madison, James. "The same subject continued, the utility of the union as a safeguard against domestic faction and insurrection." The Federalist (2001): 42-49.

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