Hawaii Democratic Party Wants to Close their Primary

Today, Hawaii is an Open Primary state. Hawaii voter registration forms do not ask the applicant to choose a party, and on primary day, any voter is free to vote in any party’s primary.

"When voting in the primary, you must select only one party in the Select a Party section of the ballot card, then vote for candidates of the party you selected. If you do not select a party and/or you vote in more than one party ballot, your vote will not be counted."

On August 22, 2013, the Hawaii Democratic Party submitted an affidavit to a U.S. District Court that is hearing the party’s lawsuit against the open primary.

The state party chairman submitted information about the party’s current policy of inviting Hawaii registered voters to join the party. The affidavit says the party has approximately 65,000 members. One joins the party by going to the party’s web page and filling out an application. Members sign that they generally agree with the party’s goals. The party asks for a contribution of $25, but it is voluntary.

CLICK HERE to view their website and view the form.

Next, the state will need to submit its brief in defense of the current election law, which requires all qualified parties to nominate by primary.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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The Democratic Party of Hawaii Filed a Lawsuit to Close the Primary Election

The Democratic Party of Hawaii filed a lawsuit on June 17, 2013 in federal court challenging the state's open primary system as an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment right to free association.

The lawsuit contends that only voters who are party members or who publicly declare party affiliation in advance should be able to participate in primaries. The open primary system, the suit alleges, enables all voters, including some who are indifferent to or even opposed to the party's beliefs, to help select the party's candidates.

Hawaii at this time does not ask voters to choose a party when they register to vote.

Democratic Party Chair, Dante Carpenter, says Labor Attorney Tony Gill will proceed with the lawsuit on the party's behalf.

As the law stands now, the Democratic Party of Hawaii must allow candidates who claim Democratic Party affiliation to run as Democrats, but the party leadership said that provision "does violence to the party’s own association of freedoms and freedoms of its membership."

They also want to have Hawaii return to a closed primary election system to prevent Republicans and independents from crossing over to vote in Democratic primaries. That would mean those voting in the primary election would have to show a party card or prove party affiliation before casting votes for Democrats on the ballot.

The party central committee and leadership notes: "The Democratic Party of Hawaii believes that its primary election, a state imposed mandatory nomination procedure, ought to be open to participation of only such persons as are willing to declare their affiliation with and support of the party, either through public registration to vote, or through maintenance of membership in the party. The party further believes that the current Constitution and laws of the United States, by maintaining secrecy of affiliation, and by compelling the party to admit to its nomination procedures those who have no interest in it, or actually oppose the interests, values and platform of the party, do violence to the party's associational freedom and the individual freedoms of its membership to define their own political views, guaranteed under the Constitution of the United States. The State Central Committee and party chairperson shall take the appropriate action to correct this injustice."










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote!

Michael H. Drucker
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