Independents should vote in presidential primaries

In 2016, on the day following Arizona’s disastrous Presidential Preference Election (PPE), two things happened. First, I decided to run for Maricopa County recorder, the office that runs these elections. And second, Gov. Doug Ducey called for allowing Arizona’s independent (or No Party Designated) voters to be allowed to vote in that election as they do in other primary elections.

The governor and I may disagree on other policy matters, but we shared an observation that day – we saw eligible U.S. citizens denied the right to vote – and we agree that this is wrong.

I still stand firm on the principle I did then, but with more urgency. I am now calling on my party to live up to its name and I’m asking Arizona’s Democrats to open the 2020 PPE to independent voters.

The biggest threat to our elections is misinformation. Because of our odd primary systems – we allow independents to vote in federal, state and local primary elections but not in the PPE – Arizona creates unnecessary confusion and misinformation. The 2016 PPE is the case in point. We should have one set of rules for all primaries.

There is a possibility that the Democratic Party’s nominee will be the next president of the United States. Arizona’s independent voters must have a say in the selection of a nominee where any party has a contest. In addition to reducing voter confusion and misinformation, there are other reasons why this idea’s time has come.

The PPE is a taxpayer-funded election for a private political party. If the Democrats (and Republicans, for that matter) want a private election, they should pay for it. It is wrong for Arizona to exclude one-third of tax-paying voters, essentially forcing independents to change their party affiliation to participate.

Allowing independents to vote in the PPE also fits into Arizona’s long tradition of pragmatic solutions to solvable issues. Whether they were Democrats or Republicans, our leaders from Carl Hayden to Barry Goldwater to Dennis DeConcini to John McCain sought solutions that worked for all Arizonans, not just members of their own political party.

The decision to open the PPE to independents is politically significant for both parties. The notions of party-building and exclusivity ring loudly with partisans. But the exodus of voters over time proves that party loyalty is less important than it once was. Arizona’s independence defines the Grand Canyon state.

Lastly, a closed PPE presents an interesting tension between two fundamental rights, the First Amendment right of people to associate in private organizations – as our political parties do – and the right of citizens to vote in elections for our leaders. But courts across the U.S. have already ruled, if a party asks to open a closed primary, even where there is a state law to the contrary, the independent voters end up winning, and voting.

I am a proud registered Democrat, but I am a proud American first. The same motive that pushed me to run for this office now makes me ask my own party to be more democratic – and make every effort to open the PPE to independent voters. As the Jewish scholar Hillel once said, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am for myself only, what am I?”