The modern political party system in the U.S. is a two-party system dominated by the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. This fact has not prevented minor parties or independent candidates from running for office at the local, state, and national levels.
Currently, the American Senate consists of only two parties; the Republicans and Democrats as well as two Independents that caucus with the Democrats (Bernie Sanders and Angus King). Bernie Sanders is an independent who caucuses with Senate Democrats and is most popular among Democrats. Sanders has remained an independent throughout his career in Washington, but caucuses with the Democrats and serves on the party’s leadership team as the Senate outreach director.
Senator Sanders lobbied his way into the Democratic senate caucus for practical reasons (getting coveted committee assignments, mustering votes for bills). Recently he was rated as the most prominent advocate for progressive policies in the U.S.
In 1991, Sanders along with four liberal Democrats founded the Congressional Progressive Caucus and he became its chairman. At some point, Sanders began to win the goodwill of Democratic leadership, all the while refusing to join the party as a member. Though he is an independent, Sanders caucuses with congressional Democrats, throughout his senatorial career, Sanders has reshaped Democratic politics by virtue of his strategic alignment in the parliament.
In 2006, when Sanders decided to run for senate as an independent candidate, the Democrat party worked to stop Democratic candidates from running against him, and he was endorsed by Democrats even without joining the party officially.
DEMOCRACY: A GAME OF NUMBERS.
Like Bernie Sanders, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah is a man of his own ideas and catalyst for political revolution who understands that Democracy is a game of numbers and that lawmaking is not a one man affair rather it is done as a team, in caucus.
The Ninth Nigerian Senate is made up of 109 Senators;
APC: 63 Senators.
PDP: 43 Senators.
YPP: 1 Senator.
As the only YPP legislator in the Ninth senate, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah perfectly understands the legislative business which entails lobbying across partisan divides to ensure that his constituents enjoy full dividends of democracy in the ninth senate. He clearly understands that aligning with the caucus that has the right number will quickly get his bills, constituency projects and other zonal interventions initiatives attended to quickly.
By aligning with the APC senate majority caucus which has the highest number in the ninth senate, when there is need for voting on the senate floor, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah will always get block votes by virtue of his affiliation and the strength of numbers of the majority caucus. This will be a comparative and added advantage for his constituents as it will always guarantee them fast and smooth passage of bills, motions, projects and interventions that relate to them, as well a key minority position for YPP in the senate chamber.
While some igbo senators are busy lobbying secretly for Senate leadership positions and others standing by the window. In less than one week, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah has visibly become a major factor in Lawan inner caucus and has gotten the nomination of the majority senate caucus. He has also strategically doused the lingering crisis of Igbo traders in Lagos with the intervention and involvement of the incoming senate President; Senator Ahmed Lawan.
It is hence significant that we point to the fact that parliamentary caucusing is a normal legislative practice that affords legislators the opportunity to work closely with other parties as long as it promotes the interest and agenda of their constituents.
Conclusively, Given Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah’s wealth of ideas and Investments across divergent sectors of the economy (Oil and Gas, Maritime, Sports, media and trade) as well as his strategic caucus engagements, native-street intelligence and vast social connections that cuts across partisan divides, Anambra South and the Igbo nation at large will be on the right side of history with him in the ninth senate.
