The debate over open primaries could soon be heading to the halls of Congress. A group of bipartisan lawmakers last month introduced the Let America Vote Act of 2024, which would require open primaries for state and federal elections across the country.
The bill states: “It is the understanding of the Congress that the right of any citizen of the United States to vote for public office in tax-supported elections shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of affiliation with any political party or lack thereof.”
Here is the initiators’ justification for introducing the bill on nationwide open primaries:
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“This common-sense reform is neither political nor controversial. It ensures that every U.S. citizen, regardless of political affiliation, has the full right to vote, while strengthening election integrity by strictly prohibiting noncitizens from participating in taxpayer-funded elections.” – Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Penn.
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“Participation in our democracy is a core citizen right, and voters who do not belong to a political party have the right to have their voice heard throughout the political process.” – Representative Jared Golden, Democrat from Maine
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“The right to vote is reserved exclusively for American citizens. I am pleased to co-sponsor this bill that enshrines that common sense principle and protects our elections from unconstitutional voting by non-citizens.” – Rep. Andrew Garbarino, RN.Y.
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“Good ideas come from both sides of the aisle, so Americans should not be denied the right to vote for the candidate of their choice just because that candidate does not belong to a political party.” – Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Democrat, Washington.
The sponsors of the Let America Vote Act of 2024 described the features of the bill as follows:
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“The right of any United States citizen to vote in a tax-supported election for public office shall not be denied or abridged because of his party affiliation or lack thereof.”
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“No person not a citizen shall be permitted or entitled to vote in any tax-supported election for public office under the United States or any state thereof.”
Notably, this federal bill does not require the controversial use of ranked choice voting (RCV). Open primaries and RCV are two very different things.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), primaries can be classified as closed, partially closed, partially open, open to independent voters, or multi-party. This is how the NCSL classifies the primary election systems of each state.
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Multi-party primaries (including top-two and similar systems) – 5 states (Alaska, California, Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington): “A small but growing number of states hold a single primary in which all candidates, regardless of party, are listed on a single ballot.”
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Open primary – 15 states (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin): “In an open primary, voters choose which ballot to cast their vote on, but that decision is confidential and does not result in the voter being registered with that party.”
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Open to unaffiliated voters – 7 states (Arizona, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Rhode Island): “Many states allow unaffiliated voters to vote in any party’s primary, but do not allow voters registered with one party to vote in any other party’s primary.”
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Partially open – 4 states (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio): “This system allows voters to cross party lines, but their voting decision can be viewed as a form of registration with the corresponding party.”
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Partially Closed – 9 states (Connecticut, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah and West Virginia): “In this system, state law allows political parties to decide before each election cycle whether to allow unaffiliated voters or voters not registered with the party to participate in their nominating contests.”
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Closed primaries – 10 states (Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Wyoming): “Generally, a voter wishing to participate in a closed primary must be a registered party member.”
Although there are many examples of states with open primaries, only Alaska and Maine currently use ranked choice voting in statewide elections. Alaska voters adopted ranked choice voting by a narrow 50.55% in 2020, but its use has been so controversial that Alaskans will have the opportunity to abolish it this fall with the approval of a new ballot proposal.
Both Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs and Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen have spoken out against ranked choice voting. Hobbs said that “ranked choice voting makes voting more complicated and could disenfranchise people who are not experts in the field.”
As the sponsors of the Let America Vote Act of 2024 expressed, it is important to remember that taxpayer-funded elections do not belong to private political groups. Transitioning our electoral system to clean, open primaries is a debate worth having. But implementing open primaries should not be limited to a “take it or leave it” proposition associated with the controversy surrounding ranked-choice voting.
Jason Mercier is vice president and director of research at the Mountain States Policy Center, a research organization based in Idaho, Montana, Eastern Washington, and Wyoming. Online at mountainstatespolicy.org.
