Coalition of Militants Drives Platforms

Electoral coalitions are not just the sum of groups but a cross‑issue alliance of primary militants: single‑issue voters in different constituencies jointly pull elites toward their maximal demands because those voters are decisive in primaries while moderates are passive. That dynamic can produce a party platform of many seemingly incoherent maximal demands that nonetheless maximizes each faction’s primary incentives even as it hurts general‑election prospects. — If true, the phenomenon explains why post‑election moderation narratives can be short‑lived and why nominees may adopt simultaneous maximalist positions across many issues, reshaping candidate strategy and intra‑party power struggles for 2028.