Greetings, CODA friends!
The March 5 primaries here in Texas are just around the corner, and early voting is standing on the front porch, rattling your storm door and making weird faces into your Ring camera. It begins Tuesday 2/20, people!
We’re starting to get inquiries from folks about where to vote, how to vote, and who to vote for. This post will focus on a particularly prickly topic: whether or not to vote in the other party’s primary, aka crossover voting.
You may be wondering why on earth any Democrat worth their salt would want to vote in a GOP primary. It’s rare, but it happens. Sometimes this is seen as supporting a GOP candidate who is more moderate/lesser of evils. Sometimes it is seen as voting against the frontrunner. The logic being, if enough of us vote against them in the primary, they won’t make it onto the November ballot.
If this is starting to sound tempting to you, pump the brakes. TL;DR = DON’T DO IT.
Our friends in the Fayette County Democratic Party feel strongly about this as well. They put together a brilliant treatise on why it’s a bad idea. We’ve shared it in our Facebook group. If you want to see it but you’re not on FB, let us know and we’ll email you a copy.
CODA president Ruth Todd took the time to summarize FCDP’s document for publication here. We welcome your questions and comments.
Why To Only Vote in the Democratic Primary
Voter engagement is a primary benefit of open primaries, as they allow voters to participate in the selection process regardless of party affiliation. However, there are some potentially negative consequences you should consider before promoting voting on the GOP ticket.
Reminder: if you are a precinct chair, you are not allowed by State law to vote in the other party's primary election.
The main purpose of primary elections is to allow party members to select their preferred candidates who represent their values and principles. Crossover voting may result in the election of candidates who do not represent the core values of the Democratic party. Your vote supports the complete Republican package.
In the 2024 Democratic primary, we have competitive races on the Democrat ballot for U.S. President, U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Texas Railroad Commissioner, Texas Supreme Court Justices, a range of other Judges, and Texas Board of Education. Crossover voting will deprive these candidates of your vote.
Also, if you vote in the Republican primary, you are ineligible to vote in a Democratic primary runoff.
Voting in the Republican primary also makes it look like the Republican voting strength is stronger than it is.
Boosting Republican primary vote totals also makes it appear the Democratic voting base is weak. This makes fundraising for candidates harder and discourages Democrats from running.
Voting for a Republican candidate is counter-productive to Democrats’ efforts to become competitive.
Crossover voting sometimes results in voter confusion.
Voters who consistently crossover vote may contribute to a decrease in party loyalty.
Bottom line: CODA recommends you vote early, but vote in the Democratic primary.
*snark courtesy of Ruth Todd
In other news:
As we mentioned, early voting in the Texas March 5 primary begins Tuesday February 20. You can see a sample ballot for your precinct at most county election websites. Here’s the link to see sample ballots in Bastrop County.
February is pretty busy for CODA. Hope you can join us for some of these additional get-togethers.
We’re getting requests for advice on who to vote for in the upcoming March 5 Primary. If you’d like more info, reply to this email or in the comments. At present, CODA endorsements include
The Chinese Cooking Class fundraiser last Sunday was a BLAST! Props to the MacLeods, the Murphys, and the wonderful chefs who made the event a huge success. Our future billboard(s) thanks you!
Pencil us in for our Second Annual CODA Fundraiser at Watterson Hall on March 28, 2024. Food, music, and fun, just like last year!
Thanks for reading. Remember to like, comment, subscribe, and share. Until next time!