Mark Levin isn’t talking about it. Sean Hannity isn’t talking about it. Rush Limbaugh and Laura Ingraham are not talking about it, yet it remains one of the biggest structural benefits to Team Jeb Bush in the 2016 primary presidential race:
Frustrated Conservatives Leaving The Republican Party
Independent political registration is the fastest growing base of electoral voters, and that plays nicely into the hands of the GOPe who are working diligently to avoid accountability for their progressive agenda.
Multiple states have what’s called “closed primary” races. Meaning only those voters registered with a party, who has a candidate on the ballot, are allowed to vote in the Presidential Primary Election, or PPE. Those state voters only get to vote for the candidate registered with the same party of their affiliation.
Even more states have “Modified primary” races. Meaning voters registered independent are allowed to vote on either party ballot they select at the polling station (along with those who are registered within the party on primary ballot).
A few states are “Open Primary” races. Meaning voters can select “any ballot” from “any party” at their polling station. However, truly “open primary states” are actually quite rare, and many people make a mistake in misidentifying if their state is actually “Open”.
This is because in several states, even within “open primary elections”, the “open” only pertains to off year elections and NOT the Presidential Primary, or PPE. Several “open” states are only “open election” for non-presidential primary elections.
What this creates is a situation where frustrated GOP voters denounce the activity of the GOPe party and drop their Republican Registration. Sound familiar? It should, there are hundreds of thousands -perhaps millions- of conservatives who have changed party affiliation to “independent” or “other” because they are angry with the progressive big government advocacy of the modern Republican Party.
This plays directly into the hands of the power-brokers within the Republican party, because in most states those frustrated conservatives are now blocked from voting. As a consequence Team Bush and the Establishment Republican team don’t have to worry about your influence in their primary.
The RNC/GOPe progressives, Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, Paul Ryan, Karl Rove types are thrilled when the frustrated conservative base of voters drop their party affiliation. In essence it means their opposition has just locked themselves out of the building/discussion.
Do you ever wonder why the progressive Republicans are so confident in their own re-election efforts? Do you ever wonder why they are so in-your-face with policy maneuvers (TPA Fast-Track, TPP, Iran Nuclear Deal approval, Amnesty, ObamaCare etc.) that are diametrically opposed to your position?
The fact is – the more they anger us the more people drop their Republican party affiliation, they less accountable they become.
This is by design.
The state party apparatus is also in alignment with this DC construct. Their are state Republican Party rules, schemes and maneuvers created specifically to take advantage of this sense of angst.
Who cares if you are angry, when those inside the comfy confines of the GOPe network know you can’t touch them because your vote doesn’t impact them.
Consider the recent conversation about Arizona. Arizona is one of those states with an open primary…. well, open that is, until a presidential primary comes along, and in the PPE you can only vote for a candidate within your registration. That’s right, if you are “independent” in Arizona – you get to vote for the “independent” presidential candidates; you do not get to vote for the “republican primary presidential candidate”.
It doesn’t do any good to look up “closed” primary election, “open” primary election, or “modified” primary election, to find out. You have to go several steps further than that. You have to find out which one pertains to the “PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY” specifically.
Voters should also be forewarned about calling your local elections office to find out, because we have also identified several elections offices giving out mistaken, accidental, and factually false information.
There are simply too many variables and contingencies by state, and by state party apparatus. AND nothing between now and the day of the election itself, stops legislatures from changing election rules. We have already seen numerous rule changes happening in the past weeks and months. That is one of the reasons we are adverse to compiling a list – any list could be obsolete within days, weeks of compiling it.
“oh yes we have open elections” they say. Or: “yes, we have open primary elections” is another example, which, in a general sense may be true but is not accurate when it comes time for a “Presidential Primary“.
There’s nothing worse than showing up for the “open primary” only to discover it doesn’t pertain to presidential races. And/Or the “modified open primary” doesn’t pertain to a presidential primary.
Regardless of which candidate you support, everyone who wants to defeat the Progressive Republican agenda needs to make sure they are able to vote in the Republican Primary Election of 2016.
Do your own homework with great specificity, then tell your friends, family and relatives.
Otherwise you’ll be staring at this screen in February, March, April, May of 2016 and saying to yourself – DAMN, THAT’S WHY JEB BUSH DIDN’T DROP OUT !
