Reps. Mike Lang (R-Granbury) and Matt Rinaldi (R-Irving) filed separate bills (House Bill 1061 and House Bill 1072) that would require partisan voter registration and limit voters to participating in the primaries and/or conventions of their indicated party. Voters choosing not to indicate a party preference on their registrations would be listed as “independents” and barred from participating in any party’s nominating process. Voters may change their affiliation status, but must do so before the 31st day before a primary to be eligible to vote in that primary.
As far as we can tell, Texas has not required partisan voter registration since the abolition of the poll tax and creation of statewide voter registration in 1966.
In a press release, Lang said his intent was to prevent voters from other parties from interfering with a party’s nominating process. “I do not want a Democrat voting in a Republican primary just as much as I don’t want a Republican voting in a Democrat primary in order to sway the election and degrade the integrity of the race,” Lang said. He cited an email sent by the Hood Co. Democratic Party encouraging Democrats to vote in the Republican primary election “to get a more liberal candidate” elected. Lang won the 2016 Republican primary, 54%-46%, over Granbury banker Kevin Downing.
Despite record primary turnout in 2016, Texas still ranked 29th out of 39 states holding presidential primaries, including a state that held just one party’s primary. Four states ranked below Texas held partially closed or closed primaries: Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky and New York. Three other states – California, Nebraska and New Jersey – held primaries after both presidential nominating contests were settled. Texas ranked last among states holding an open or partially open primary.
Status of Voter Participation in Partisan Nominating Processes
We have classified each state’s rules for partisan primary/convention participation based on the ability of voters to choose in which party’s nominating process they wish to participate.
Partisan registration is required in 31 states, but only nine states fully restrict participation in a party’s nominating process to those voters already registered with the party.
Categories below are listed in descending order of voters’ flexibility to choose to participate in a party’s nominating process.
Top-Two Primaries
In lieu of parties’ nominating processes, all candidates regardless of party are included on same ballot and the top two candidates, regardless of party affiliation, advance to a runoff.
California
Louisiana
Nebraska (Only for Legislature, which is nonpartisan)
Washington
Fully Open Primaries
Voters may participate in the party’s nominating process of their choice.
Alabama
Arkansas
Georgia
Hawai’i
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
North Dakota
South Carolina
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Wisconsin
Partially Open Primaries
Unaffiliated voters may participate in a political party’s nominating process, and voters affiliated with other parties may cross party lines, but voters must declare a partisan affiliation – either new or amended – at the time they vote.
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Ohio
Tennessee
Wyoming
Primaries Open to Unaffiliated Voters
Voters who are not affiliated with a political party may participate in the party’s nominating process of their choice along with voters affiliated with that party. Voters affiliated with another party must participate in that party’s nominating process.
Arizona
Colorado
Kansas
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
New Jersey
Rhode Island
West Virginia
Partially Closed Primaries
Political parties may choose whether unaffiliated voters or voters registered with other parties may participate in their nominating processes, and those choices may change from year to year. Voters have no choice beyond their voter registrations.
Alaska
Connecticut
Idaho
North Carolina
Oklahoma
South Dakota
Utah
Closed Primaries
Only voters affiliated with or registered with a political party may participate in that party’s nominating process.
Delaware
Florida
Kentucky
Maryland
Nevada
New Mexico
New York
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Despite record primary turnout in 2016, Texas still ranked 29th out of 39 states holding presidential primaries, including a state that held just one party’s primary. Four states ranked below Texas held partially closed or closed primaries: Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky and New York. Three other states – California, Nebraska and New Jersey – held primaries after both presidential nominating contests were settled. Texas ranked last among states holding an open or partially open primary.
Closing the primary to registered partisans is listed as one of several “election integrity” priorities by Texans for Fiscal Responsibility/Empower Texans.
