4 ms·

> You genuinely feel that registering with a party so you can vote in its primary elections is... a violation of the idea of a secret ballot? Yes, especially s

> You genuinely feel that registering with a party so you can vote in its primary elections is... a violation of the idea of a secret ballot? Yes, especially since there's no reason to require it. In Missouri, where I'm from, there is no party registration. They ask you at the polls if you want a Republican ticket or a Democratic one. No record of your choice is kept. While it's true that you could construct an epistemological and philosophical argument that party registration doesn't reveal votes, everybody knows, in a practical sense, that that's exactly what it does.

mikeash 8y ago
A decent number of people vote in the opposing party’s primaries, either because the general election is a foregone conclusion and it’s the only way they’ll have any real input, or to vote for the worst candidate in order to give their own party a better chance. I think that requiring people to declare an affiliation ahead of time is bad. And making it completely secret might be a decent goal. But recording which primary you voted in seems fine too.
- dionidium 8y ago
  By one account, something like 5% of voters engage in "crossover voting" for the first reason you gave ("it’s the only way they’ll have any real input") and almost nobody for the latter reason ("to vote for the worst candidate in order to give their own party a better chance"). If you see a D or an R next to somebody's name in this app, then you know who they voted for with pretty high confidence. http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-california-politics-20150222-story.html http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-california-p...
  - justtopost 8y ago
    I admit to having done both types of crossover voting. I personaly loathe the party system and those that perpetuate it. I have zero alegiance to any 'party', as they have similar feelings toward me. Its like sports favoritism, except with very real consequences. Partisanship makes me sick and deeply ashamed for those involved.
    - dionidium 8y ago
      I balked at the party registration requirement when I moved to New York, registering as "Independent" in timid protest.

mikeash 8y ago

A decent number of people vote in the opposing party’s primaries, either because the general election is a foregone conclusion and it’s the only way they’ll have any real input, or to vote for the worst candidate in order to give their own party a better chance. I think that requiring people to declare an affiliation ahead of time is bad. And making it completely secret might be a decent goal. But recording which primary you voted in seems fine too.

dionidium 8y ago
By one account, something like 5% of voters engage in "crossover voting" for the first reason you gave ("it’s the only way they’ll have any real input") and almost nobody for the latter reason ("to vote for the worst candidate in order to give their own party a better chance"). If you see a D or an R next to somebody's name in this app, then you know who they voted for with pretty high confidence. http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-california-politics-20150222-story.html http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-california-p...
- justtopost 8y ago
  I admit to having done both types of crossover voting. I personaly loathe the party system and those that perpetuate it. I have zero alegiance to any 'party', as they have similar feelings toward me. Its like sports favoritism, except with very real consequences. Partisanship makes me sick and deeply ashamed for those involved.
  - dionidium 8y ago
    I balked at the party registration requirement when I moved to New York, registering as "Independent" in timid protest.