Jan 11 2008
Illinois’ Closed Primary
Each primary election I get numerous phone calls from voters who are disturbed by the Illinois requirement that you declare your party affiliation at the polling place on election day in order to be able to participate in the party primaries. I’ll try here to give some explanation for why this is done.
Before examining the closed primary system, it is good to identify the terms, which often confuse people. A closed primary is one that is closed to people who are not members of the party. In Illinois, you become a member of the party on election day by OPENLY declaring your membership in the party that day. An open primary is one where you don’t have to declare your affiliation.
The closed primary is set up to prevent what is called party raiding. That is the practice of members of one party crossing over and influencing the primary of the opposite party. Those “raiders” could either vote for a candidate who holds views very similar to their own party or, more cynically, for a candidate that they believe would be easiest to beat.
In years where the nomination is far from certain (like 2008) this is not a major issue. But in years where one party’s nominee is certain (for example the Republicans in 2004) it could be an issue.
The Republican and Democratic Party Delegate selection rules each recognize this concern and thus require that a person’s party affiliation be publicly declared.
The Republican Party rules state: (page 8 )
(2) Only persons eligible to vote who are deemed as a matter of public record to be Republicans pursuant to state law or, if voters are not enrolled by party, by Republican party rules of a state, shall participate in any primary election held for the purpose of electing delegates or alternate delegates to the national convention or in any Republican caucus, mass meeting, or mass convention held for the purpose of selecting delegates to the county, district, or state conventions, and only such legal and qualified voters shall be elected as delegates to county, district, and state conventions;
The Democratic Party rules state:
1. Democratic voters shall be those persons who publicly declare their Party preference and have that preference publicly recorded.
So while the Illinois legislature could alter the law to make Illinois an open primary state, it is likely that neither party would recognize the results of that election.
The “closedness” of primaries across the country varies. In Illinois, there is no declaration of party at the time of voter registration. Instead, you publicly declare your affiliation on the day you vote in the primary election, regardless of how you have voted in the past. In fact, you could even declare for one party, get in the polling booth, change your mind after you see the ballot, return the ballot to the judges, and get a new ballot of another party!
Illinois law changed this past year to become more forgiving of party switching. In previous elections, if you had signed a petition for a candidate of one political party for a primary election, you were unable to vote in the same primary election for a different political party. Now you can vote in any primary, regardless of what petitions you may have signed in the past.
Compare that to the State of Florida. There you have to register your party affiliation with the County Election Office at least four weeks prior to the primary. So for Florida voters, that would need to have been done prior to the first votes being cast in Iowa.
Because so many voters in Champaign County, and throughout the state, routinely switch their party affiliation from one primary to another, no one should skip voting because they feel that they are being “labeled” when they declare their affiliation on February 5.
This presidential primary season has been the most exciting in my lifetime. I expect record turnout, even with the closed primary rule.
Thanks. I needed a little clarification. I want to be able to vote, but didn’t want to be “locked in” to a particular party.
This advice was JUST what I had been Googling for! I have voted republican in the past, but wish to vote Democratic in this election and I feared in a “closed election” I would be barred from chaning parties. I did not recall whether I declared a party affiliation when I registered. Thanks for the info!
Thanks so much for the information. I’ve passed it on to others with the hope that they will vote.
Thanks. Does anyone know if the same rules apply to early voting? Must one be registered by party to vote for that party’s primary, or can one change party affiliation at the polling place too?
These rules apply to early voting as well. So if you go to the Brookens Center to vote early, or at your polling place on election day, you can pick any of the three established political parties at that time.
Thanks. This was very helpful.
Looking at my Champaign County “sample ballot” for Feb 5th – I’m confused and after searching, still can’t find the answer to my question about how the delegates work.
For instance, on the Republican ballot, you can vote for “President of the United States.” Say here I choose McCain.
The next column says “Delegate to the National Nominating Convention. 15th Congressional District.” Do I need to make sure to choose the four people that have “McCain” listed underneath? Is this redundant?
What if I split it – choose two that say “McCain” and two that say “Paul”? Does that split my vote somehow? Nullify it?
What if I skip this part? Are the appropriate delegates selected for me?
What advantage is there to choosing the “uncommitted” person?
I’m obviously missing something I don’t know about the process. I’ve voted in primaries before, but I’m not recalling how this works.
Thanks for your help!
THANKS so much for that information, it’s hard to find. Anyway, when I declare my affiliation, does it get recorded somewhere and does the party have access to it?
The party you choose on election day is a public record and is attached to your voting record and available to the political parties as well as anyone else who asks.
I’d like to share MY experience from voting in the primary this morning.
I filled out my piece of paper with my name and address, and the election judge LOUDLY (and I do mean LOUDLY, so everyone waiting in line could hear it), read out my full name, my home address, and my party affiliation.
I’m not embarrassed by my political party affiliation, but I was a bit uncomfortable having my personal information read loudly by the election judge so everyone could hear it. I’ve been voting for many years, both in Champaign and in other communities where I have lived in the past, and have never experienced this before. The judge who was looking up the information in the voter registration books was sitting right next to him–there was no need for the noisy production. Heck, he could have HANDED the form to the next election judge–that’s always how I’ve seen it done in the past.
Please encourage election judges to value the privacy of voters’ personal information and party affiliations. Nobody wants their full name and address called out in front of a room full of strangers, and there are people who really DON’T want others to know about their political affiliations.
I vote at Parkland College. The election judge’s name was Terry (I believe) and he was a middle-aged man with a beard and a LOUD voice.
The real problem with the Illinois Closed Primary system is that the party you selected becomes public information, easily accessible by nearly anyone. This can, and in Illinois, routinely is, used to determine who will get coveted state jobs handed out by politicians. How many voting democrats were hired by the Illinois State Police or Corrections department during years when Republicans were running the government?
I too experienced the staff yelling out my full name and party affiliation – very uncomfortable. It felt like a very strange contradiction to other efforts to protect privacy and make all voters feel comfortable with the process.
I, too had my name, address, and party loudly read out. I am originally from Minnesota and this information was PRIVATE. Only 11 states continue with this system. I don’t necessarily want the three people who live on my street and were voting at the same time as I was, to know my party affiliation. It should be confidential. Furthermore, I was handed the wrong ballot and had to go back to the desk, which created even more of a distubance.
This was very helpful – wasted a lot of time trying to find it (most of that time spent on David Orr’s site). I, too, could not remember if I registered for a party at voting time. Now, I know I didn’t. Thanks.
Here is the relevant statute regarding the announcing of the name.
(10 ILCS 5/17-9)
Sec. 17-9. Any person desiring to vote shall give his name and, if required to do so, his residence to the judges of election, one of whom shall thereupon announce the same in a loud and distinct tone of voice, clear, and audible; the judges of elections shall check each application for ballot against the list of voters registered in that precinct to whom grace period, absentee, or early ballots have been issued for that election, which shall be provided by the election authority and which list shall be available for inspection by pollwatchers.