Anne-Louise, I know this can confusing, but I’ll take a try at explaining our party registration rules and at what point they may or may not apply.
First, we need to discern between types of elections - meaning Primary vs General. In the Primary Election, which always occurs before the General Election, the voters are deciding who the can…
Anne-Louise, I know this can confusing, but I’ll take a try at explaining our party registration rules and at what point they may or may not apply.
First, we need to discern between types of elections - meaning Primary vs General. In the Primary Election, which always occurs before the General Election, the voters are deciding who the candidate will be that stands for for the political party in the General Election. In the 50 states/commonwealths (wish I could tell you the difference between these 2 entities, but alas, I cannot) that make up the United States many (not all) require that, in the Primary, ONLY political party members can vote. Moreover, many states ONLY (again, not all) allow voters to cast a ballot for those registered in the political party to which the voter belongs, i.e., Republicans for Republicans & Democrats for Democrats. Thus, the voter list carries party affiliation information so that the voter gets the correct ballot. And, just to confuse the issue, some states allow voters in primary elections to vote regardless of party affiliation.
However, once the candidates are selected in the Primary, a voter may vote in the General Election regardless of party affiliation. So no declaration of party membership by the voter, nor need to differentiate ballots handed to the voters. I hope this helps.
Yes, I start to see why things are in such a mess. This "system" is as inappropriate to the present day as is the wording of the Constitution. I'm very grateful to you and all the others of us who have taken the trouble to explain this to me. I think Karen Tumulty of WaPo must read LFAA, because she's got an opinion piece up today (which I've just read) headed "Who elects these clowns, exactly? As it turns out, almost none of us." Her article is embellished with a picture of Gaetz (he of the virile right eyebrow) and Boebert gazing adoringly at him. Ugh, what a way to start a day. Where's the coffee.
Anne-Louise, I know this can confusing, but I’ll take a try at explaining our party registration rules and at what point they may or may not apply.
First, we need to discern between types of elections - meaning Primary vs General. In the Primary Election, which always occurs before the General Election, the voters are deciding who the candidate will be that stands for for the political party in the General Election. In the 50 states/commonwealths (wish I could tell you the difference between these 2 entities, but alas, I cannot) that make up the United States many (not all) require that, in the Primary, ONLY political party members can vote. Moreover, many states ONLY (again, not all) allow voters to cast a ballot for those registered in the political party to which the voter belongs, i.e., Republicans for Republicans & Democrats for Democrats. Thus, the voter list carries party affiliation information so that the voter gets the correct ballot. And, just to confuse the issue, some states allow voters in primary elections to vote regardless of party affiliation.
However, once the candidates are selected in the Primary, a voter may vote in the General Election regardless of party affiliation. So no declaration of party membership by the voter, nor need to differentiate ballots handed to the voters. I hope this helps.
Yes, I start to see why things are in such a mess. This "system" is as inappropriate to the present day as is the wording of the Constitution. I'm very grateful to you and all the others of us who have taken the trouble to explain this to me. I think Karen Tumulty of WaPo must read LFAA, because she's got an opinion piece up today (which I've just read) headed "Who elects these clowns, exactly? As it turns out, almost none of us." Her article is embellished with a picture of Gaetz (he of the virile right eyebrow) and Boebert gazing adoringly at him. Ugh, what a way to start a day. Where's the coffee.