Alexa Aguilar
Do you think a voter should have to declare a party affiliation when voting in the primary election? Go online to www.dailyegyptian.com to cast your vote.
Year after year, turnout for primary elections is feeble, usually lingering somewhere between 20 and 30 percent.
Analysts blame voter apathy, confusion about the primary system, even the weather if it rains on election day.
Some question if the primary process itself is an unnecessary barrier that scares people away. In other words, is forcing voters to declare a party affiliation in an era when many don't care for partisan politics turning people off from the polls?
Common sense would say yes, political analyst John Jackson said, but the research says no.
"Anecdotally, I have heard people say, 'I don't want to vote because of retribution, I don't want to have to ask for a ballot,'" Jackson said.
"But when political researchers look at the differences in results between open and not-so-open primaries, the correlation just isn't there."
Illinois' primary system requires that when a voter goes to the polls, he or she ask for a party's ballot. That voter is recorded as pulling either a Democratic or Republican ballot.
Other states' requirements are even more stringent, and require that voters register before the election as a party member. The other extreme are the few states that have had blanket primaries, allowing voters to cross back and forth between the parties on the ballot.
Before voters complain about any restrictions, though, it's important to remember that primary and general elections are completely different, said Barb Brown, political science lecturer.
"The primary is a unique set of circumstances," Brown said. "It's the one opportunity for parties to pick their candidate. That's a critical decision for a party, and party leaders argue that only those people willing to declare the party's label should help make that choice."
The candidate that's chosen in the spring primary is the one who will face off against the other party's chosen candidate come November. Naturally, parties want the candidate who most reflects their party's electorate.
"Because the stakes are so high, parties have a legitimate concern about getting the best candidate in," Brown said.
"It depends on your priority. If your priority is to increase participation, and to remove any barriers, then an argument can be made for an open primary. But if the priority is to get voters who are committed to the party and who that party nominates, then you could make that argument for the current primary."
A completely open primary can also be an easy way for other parties to create "mischief" at the polls, Jackson said. For example, if the Republican voter is a shoo-in, then Republican voters may raid the Democratic ballot to vote for the Democrat's weakest candidate. Or middle-of-the-road candidates may attract members from both parties, and alter party leaders' optimal outcome.
Jackson pointed to Lieutenant Governor Corinne Wood's recent bid for the governor's seat. Toward the end of the campaign, she made a concerted effort to reach out to Democratic and independent voters. If Illinois' primary was completely open, then she may have garnered enough votes from them to claim the Republican bid.
Rob Richie, executive director for the Center for Voting and Democracy, said that closed primaries can allow for one party to keep a stranglehold on a county or district.
Let's say that a county is hugely Democratic, and reliably and consistently sends Democrats to the statehouse or Congress. If voters don't vote in the primary, and the general election is all but a given, the voters who aren't extremely partisan have just been eliminated.
Regardless of the pros and cons of the current primary system in Illinois, it is likely it's here to stay.
Changes to the process have to be made in the state legislature. And according to Brown, in a state like Illinois with its traditional partisan dynamic, the stakes are too high for party leaders to have a change of heart.
"Stakes in politics rise and fall. And parties are responsible for making sure they have an effective nominee," Brown said.
Reporter Alexa Aguilar can be reached at aaguilar@dailyegyptian.com
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
