Sunday, February 12, 2012
Point/Counterpoint: Naming party preference would increase participation
In our weekly Point/Counterpoint feature, we invite knowledgeable people (usually two) to express their views on a current topic. After reading each other's columns, our guests then write rebuttals on the RoundTable blog, where readers can join in the conversation.
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- Bill voids landowners’ right to property
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From the RoundTable blog
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A way to encourage more participation
There are more than 5 million registered voters in Virginia. None of them are Democrats or Republicans. There are no Libertarians or Greens, either. How could a swing state with millions of voters in a nation with elections that are fiercely contested by the major parties not have a single registered Democrat or Republican? The answer is simple: Virginia does not allow voters to self-identify by party.
You might think this prohibition encourages bipartisanship or achieves a kind of egalitarian ideal. But there is no evidence that our politics are more harmonious or less partisan than our neighbors' in Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee or West Virginia, all of whom are allowed to register by party.
While the benefits from being prohibited to register by party may be difficult to ascertain, the negative effects on our parties are not. Having no way to limit participation in their nominating contests to those who intend to support their eventual nominee, Virginia's parties resort to other means to ensure that Republicans are not choosing the Democrats' nominee, and vice-versa.
Opting for a nominating process that inevitably includes only the most fervent of the party faithful — a convention, firehouse primary or caucus — is one method employed by the parties. Another is a pledge, signed by voters who participate in primaries. The former limits the number of participants while the latter offends the sensibilities of those who do participate.
If voters identify by party when registering, primaries that allowed more widespread participation would be much more attractive to the parties.
Senate Bill 62 would give those registering to vote the ability to identify partisan preference and allow currently registered voters to inform their local registrar if they have a partisan preference.
The bill would still allow voters to register without expressing a partisan preference. All voters who did not either choose a party when registering or inform their registrar of a preference would be considered independents.
By continuing to allow participation in primaries while creating a way to prevent inter-partisan mischief, the bill is intended to strike a balance. And because voters could change their affiliation at will, the bill does not impose a new prohibition on those who want to participate in a particular primary.
Committed Republicans should not be helping to select Democratic nominees, nor should committed Democrats be selecting Republican nominees. With a First Amendment right to association, political parties should be able to select their nominees while still allowing the greatest level of participation.
S.B. 62 strikes a balance, allowing the parties to maximize participation while being reasonably sure that those participating in primaries are committed to the party and its nominees.
