Open Primaries

08/28/2026

We have to change the way we think about elections. Primary elections should be for everyone, not just the most partisan voters.
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08/26/2026

Powerful op-ed from Mike Madrid in the Sacramento Bee about independent Latino voters and the push in California to lock them out of the primary system. Mike writes "The current push to repeal an open California primary where the top-two candidates advance to the general election for a return to partisan primaries deserves to be called what it is: voter suppression." Read more here.

The current push to repeal an open California primary deserves to be called what it is: voter suppression.

08/26/2026

NEW OP-ED: "[Independents in NYC] were asking why they are excluded from public elections that they help pay for and that often determine who governs their city. That question deserves an answer." Read more from Open Primaries SVP Jeremy Gruber in Vital City here ⬇️

A diagnosis of why a democratic reform that has succeeded in so many other places has failed to gain traction in New York

08/23/2026

Just kidding, we can’t. NYC’s primary elections are closed which means independent voters cannot vote in them. We’re fighting to change that. Sign the petition at the link in our bio 🔗👌

08/21/2026

It’s really simple: when we make it easier for people to vote, more people vote. That’s why we are fighting for open primaries, to ensrue that everyone can vote, regardless of their party affiliation.

08/16/2026

🇺🇸 ICYMI: A Declaration for America's 250th Birthday

This Fourth of July, Open Primaries released the Declaration of Independents—a call to reaffirm a simple but fundamental democratic principle:

Political rights belong to citizens, not political parties.

Nearly half of America's registered voters now identify as independents, yet millions are still excluded from taxpayer-funded primary elections simply because they choose not to join a political party.

Now, independent voters from across the country have joined together in a powerful spoken-word performance of the Declaration.

🎥 Watch the video, read the Declaration, and join the growing movement for equal voting rights:

https://openprimaries.org/declaration-of-independents/

08/15/2026

New Yorkers talking to New Yorkers. We’re out here at Harlem Week talking with folks about our fight to open the primaries in NYC. The message is simple: let all voters vote.

https://newyorkopenprimaries.org/

08/15/2026

Hey Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani 👋 Can we chat for a sec?
1.2M New Yorkers are registered as independents and cannot vote in NYs primary elections. Seems like that should change, right? If you think so too, sign the petition for a town hall with Mayor Mamdani at the link below:

https://newyorkopenprimaries.org/

08/15/2026

Isn’t it crazy that 1.2M New Yorkers are locked out of the primary election? Our voices deserve to be heard, too. Take action —> Sign the petition https://newyorkopenprimaries.org/

08/15/2026

Who do elected officials really answer to?

That's the question Chloe Akers, founder of Best of Tennessee, explores in a powerful new opinion piece in the Tennessean.

When only a small share of voters participates in the elections that decide who holds office, political accountability shifts away from the majority of Tennesseans.

As Chloe writes:

"Everyone with a job has a boss. Lawmakers are no different. In a healthy representative democracy, lawmakers' 'boss' should be the majority of voters."

She argues that if just one in four Tennesseans who vote in November also voted in the August primary, the primary electorate would nearly double—and elected officials would answer to a much broader cross-section of the public.

Read Chloe's full op-ed in the Tennessean:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/contributors/2026/07/30/be-the-boss-vote-in-the-august-6-primary-election/91102869007/

Tennessee lawmakers are incentivized to answer to a small primary electorate rather than the majority of voters.