Last March, a coalition of seven individual plaintiffs, the Independent Voter Project, and IndependentVoting.org filed suit in New Jersey's federal court challenging the constitutionality of the state's closed primary system.
Two main grievances from the complaint:
- New Jersey’s closed primary system violated a voter’s First Amendment right of non-association because voters are required to join a political party to participate in the taxpayer-funded primary process.
- New Jersey’s closed primary system violates the Fourteenth amendment’s Equal Protection Clause because the primary system gives political parties and their members superior access to the election franchise; which has the effect of diluting the influence of voters who choose not to join the Republican or Democratic parties.
On appeal, the plaintiffs/appellants have asked the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals the following questions:
1. Are the State of New Jersey’s (“state”) non-presidential primary elections an integral stage of the election process in New Jersey?
2. Does every voter have a fundamental right to vote in all integral stages of an election?
3. Do appellants state a claim under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution when the state creates two classes of voters: (i) registered voters who ‘qualify’ to vote in primary elections by virtue of joining the Democratic or Republican political parties; and, (ii) registered voters who are not ‘qualified’ to vote in primary elections because they have not joined the Republican or Democratic parties?
4. Do appellants state a claim under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution when the state requires voters to join the Republican or Democratic parties as a condition to gaining access to an integral stage of the state’s election process?
5. Did the lower court err by relying on precedent related to a political party’s right to control their candidate nomination proceedings, rather than precedent related to rights of individual voters to participate in the election process?
The Court has scheduled to hear the case on March 17, 2015. Oral argument has been tentatively calendared for that date as well.
The Third Circuit will convene a three-judge panel by March 7, 2015. This panel will ultimately decide whether oral argument will be heard.
The panel will consider whether all voters, not just Republicans and Democrats, are "qualified" to vote in a state-funded, administered, and sanctioned election process.
CLICK HERE for more information about this case.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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