The following is presented as part of The Columbian’s Opinion content, which offers a point of view in order to provoke thought and debate of civic issues. Opinions represent the viewpoint of the author. Unsigned editorials represent the consensus opinion of The Columbian’s editorial board, which operates independently of the news department.
For some 4.8 million Washington voters, the most confusing ballot of the past four years probably arrived in the mail last week. If not, it likely will arrive this week.
It’s the state primary ballot, which actually comes once a year about this time, but tends to generate the most questions in years divisible by four.
The first question is almost always, “Didn’t I just cast a primary ballot?”
The answer is “Yes, but.” The qualifier is that the primary ballot cast in March was a presidential primary ballot for the candidates seeking the nomination for either the Democratic or Republican presidential nomination. This primary is to narrow down the choices for other races that will be on the November ballot.
So why does the state have two primaries?
That’s a bit more complicated, and involves a fairly long history that we’ll condense here. The presidential primary is relatively new — approved in the 1990s, but the rules have changed several times since — and was instituted with the hope that Washington voters could play a bigger role in choosing the presidential nominee. (It hasn’t worked all that well, but that’s a different issue.)
To be counted by the parties, the presidential primary has certain rules that require a voter to state that he or she is, at least when marking the ballot, a member of the party of the candidate being chosen. If a voter says he or she is a Democrat and marks the ballot for a Republican candidate, or vice versa, the ballot isn’t counted. If a voter fails to say he or she is a member of one of those parties, and votes for any candidate, the ballot isn’t counted.
The state primary is older, dating to the 1930s, and it was an effort to give voters more control — and the political parties less control — of selecting the candidates in the general election.
For many years, the Democrat with the most votes and the Republican with the most votes in any given race advanced to the general election, as did certain minor-party candidates or independents who got a certain percentage of the primary vote. But a voter wasn’t limited in his or her choices, and could pick a Republican for senator, a Democrat for governor, an independent for lieutenant governor and even a Communist for state school superintendent. (Just kidding. The school superintendent office is nonpartisan.)
But it, too, has changed in recent decades because of legal challenges by the parties. A state primary voter can still vote for any candidate for any office — one per race, of course — but instead of the Democrat and Republican with the highest vote counts advancing, the two candidates with the most votes advance. That’s why it’s often called the “top-two primary.”
Does that mean the general election could be between two Democrats or two Republicans?
Yes.
Do the parties like that better?
Generally not. It is, however, a good lesson in being careful what you ask for, particularly if you’re asking the courts.
Why does the ballot say the candidates “prefer” a particular party? In Washington, voters don’t register by party and candidates don’t run with the approval of the party they claim. They may or may not be active members of the party they list as a preference.
Why haven’t I heard of some of these parties, like the “Nonsense Busters Party” or the “Standup America Party” or the “No Labels Party”?
Sometimes candidates just make up a name, often to signify something about their political philosophy. Others may just have too much time on their hands. There’s also probably no difference between the “GOP Party” and the “Republican Party” or the “Trump Republican Party.”
If I marked the presidential primary ballot as a Democrat or a Republican in March, do I have to vote only for that party’s candidates in the state primary?
No. You can vote for any candidate you want in the state primary. You are also not required to vote for the same candidate in the general election that you vote for in the state primary. Just get the primary ballot postmarked or in a drop box by Aug. 6.
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