Primary Elections

IN EXISTENCE SINCE the early 20th century, primary elections are a defining characteristic of politics in the United States. No other democracy, with the exception of Canada, allows so much popular influence in the selection of political leadership. American voters elect the candidates who run in presidential, congressional, and gubernatorial elections, as well as elections for other state offices. Primary elections are usually traced to the U.S. progressive movement. Until about 1910, the convention system, which had replaced the [Page 673]legislative caucus in mid-19th century, had remained the dominant method of party candidate nomination. However, conventions were increasingly seen as instruments of machine politics and state party leaders. Backed up by the rising middle class, consisting of small businesspersons, professionals, and independent farmers, progressive reformers at the turn of the 20th century championed the adoption of direct primary elections to undercut the power of machine politics at both local and state levels. In the south, while progressives also favored adoption of direct primaries, primary elections were part of the electoral institutions designed to disenfranchise African Americans and further strengthen Democratic Party dominance. Thus, primary elections emerged out of two different historical and political conditions.

Extension of the primary elections to nominating presidential candidates took a little longer, but by 1916, 25 states had passed presidential primary laws. However, the state conventions and caucuses retained the lion's share in the nomination process until the 1970s when the number of states with presidential primaries grew from 25 to 33. After 1972, the number of states that held presidential primaries continued to increase, fluctuating from election to election. For example, in 2000 a total of 41 states held presidential primaries compared to 36 in 2004. Unlike other federal and state elections, presidential primaries attract much attention from the mass media. Presidential primaries not only give people a say in selecting their leaders, but also provide the media with a long-running and exciting story line. In presidential primaries, turnout has increased from less than 10 percent of the voting age population, to about 25–30 percent in the early 21st century.

There are several types of primary elections: in closed primaries, only registered voters of the party can participate; in semi-closed primaries, both registered voters of the party and unaffiliated voters can participate; in a blanket primary, voters are given a list of candidates and they can choose candidates without regard to party lines. Blanket and non-partisan primaries are considered variants of open primaries, because voters are either not required to declare party affiliation, or may declare affiliation on the election day. In a blanket primary, voters are given a list of candidates and they can choose candidates without regard to party lines.

Blanket primaries are now used by very few states, though several states would like to adopt blanket primaries. Louisiana, for example, uses a nonpartisan variant of a blanket primary, which many states see as a model to adopt after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that a state cannot mandate that political parties use a blanket primary (California Democratic Party v. Jones). Ultimately, Washington, California, and Alaska had to change their blanket primary systems. Several states see blanket primaries as a solution to decreasing political participation. Because blanket primaries do not force voters to chose a party and allow unaffiliated voters to participate, adoption of blanket primaries can reinvigo-rate interest in the nomination process. Proponents of the blanket primary also argue that blanket primaries would lead to more moderate candidates and give voters more varied choices.

...