Why July 26th Should Be Important To You!
Why July 26th Should Be Important To You!
By Mickey Spencer
As a voter, you have the ability to register your political party affiliation (Republican, Democrat, or Independent). Registering as a Republican allows you to have a say in the Republican Primary Elections as to who the Republican candidate(s) will be in the General Election. Registering as a Democrat allows you to have a say in the Democratic Primary Elections as to who the Democratic candidate(s) will be in the General Election.
But registering as an Independent isolates you from having any say at all in who those candidates will be from which we can choose in the General Election. That’s ALL that registering as an Independent gets you. No matter which party you’re registered with, you’re free to vote for anyone you like in the General Elections. In fact, no matter which party with which you’re affiliated, in the General Election you can vote for some Republicans, some Democrats, and some third-party candidates.
So there’s really no advantage at all for being registered as an Independent… unless of course you’re allergic to being involved in the process of selecting who our candidates will be from whom we can choose.
While we can have an impact on the candidates in both major political parties, our potential to have the greatest impact is by registering as a Republican. So I would urge everyone wishing to make a conservative impact on our upcoming elections to register promptly as a Republican and to make sure to get out there and vote in the Primary Elections.
Now, why should July 26th be important to you?
July 26th is the last date you can register to vote and register a party affiliation!
Please don’t wait until the last minute since the last minute will pass and you’ll have missed your chance. Make a point of doing it as soon as possible. Put it on your calendar as something that’s you’re definitely going to do and make it a priority. The future of our nation is a priority and registering should be one as well.
There have been a number of questions posed to me since I wrote this article, This article was written specifically addressed to Florida voters. However aside from the dates involved, the content is applicable to all states that have Closed Primaries. I found a very good explanation of the difference between Open Primaries and Closed Primaries at http://archive.fairvote.org/?page=1801
Open Primaries (or pick-a-party) are those in which voters of any affiliation may vote for the slate of any party.
Closed Primaries are those in which only the voters affiliated with a party may vote in its primary.
Closed Primary states include Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
Open Primary states include Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
A handful of states don’t cleanly fit as open or closed and my best advice there would be to look at the website that I referenced above to get those explanations. Those states include California, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.
You’ll notice a few states are listed in the Other category as well as Open or Closed. Suffice it to say that it’s best to read the comments about that particular state. For instance in Idaho Democrats have an open caucus while Republicans have an open primary. Iowa has closed caucuses, but voters may change registration at the polls.
But the important thing is primaries/caucuses are decided at the state level… NOT at the federal level. And that’s as it should be!
Mickey,
Well written encouragement to participate in the Primary process. The additional comment was also informative.
Registering to vote and not taking the time to vote in the Primary has the same impact on the choices voters are given in November.
Orange County Elections
http://www.ocfelections.com/
Sample Ballots
http://www.orangevotes2010.com/home_files/Voter%20Query%20Page.asp
Thanks Todd!
Given the number of voting “irregularities” (and that’s as politely as I can put it… LOL!) in the 2008 elections, it’s advisable that EVERYONE take the sample ballot they’ll receive in their mail with them to the voting booth (for both the primary elections and the general elections) to make sure the ballot they’ll be using to actually case their vote looks just like the sample one they brought with them.