Primary system isn’t ‘oppression’

Closed primary may be unappealing, but it’s not denying anyone’s rights

In his opinion piece published in the July 17 edition of the Sunday Journal, Mike Tryon joins a chorus of voices opposed to New Mexico’s closed primary system. Unfortunately, in his heartfelt opposition, his claim of being “denied” his right to vote is misguided.

The purpose of a primary election is for the major political parties to determine who will be their candidates on the ballot in the general election.

As was explained to Tryon when he registered to vote, New Mexico is a closed primary state that currently recognizes only two major political parties: Republicans and Democrats. (The Green Party at one time was recognized as a major party in New Mexico, but failed to secure enough popular votes to maintain this status.)

While I can understand Tryon’s reluctance to associate with either party, he must understand that there is currently no “Independent” party to affiliate with. He may consider himself an “independent” voter (with a lowercase “i”), but there is no “Independent” party (with a capital “I”).

And since there is no “Independent” party, it does not have any candidates to put up for voter consideration in a primary election. The primaries are for the parties to elect their candidates. Tryon can no more register as an “Independent” than I can register as a “Hobbit.”

For example, if I go to McDonald’s and order spaghetti, I would be told that spaghetti is not available. That doesn’t mean that McDonald’s has denied me service. It means I don’t understand how menus work.

Refusing to interact with the system as it is designed is not the same thing as being denied your rights.

Nor should this refusal exempt anyone from paying taxes. We all pay taxes for public systems we may not use. I have no children attending public school, I do not ride on public transportation and I don’t use food stamps. But I gladly pay my fair share of taxes to keep those systems in place as I believe they are a benefit to the greater community.

I agree that the use of the label “decline to state” to identify voters who are neither Democrats nor Republicans is confusing. The state of New Mexico should allow voters to choose a status such as “unaffiliated with a major party” if they align with a minor party such as Green, Libertarian or Socialist, or if they do not align with any party at all.

But Tryon’s assertion that this situation has resulted in the tyrannical status of “taxation without representation” seems equally misguided. As a resident of Rio Rancho, Tryon certainly has representation in the state Legislature.

I would encourage him to contact his state representative and senator and ask them to address the issue of open vs. closed primaries. It is a worthy debate and there are pros and cons on each side. But to cry “oppression” where none truly exists does nothing to improve voter engagement in the state.