Are You For Or Against The Top 2 Primary System?

Thank you for your question.

The design and implementation of Washington's top-two primary has reduced voter choice and has hurt the voters of Washington State. These reckless changes were done by the incumbent Secretary of State.

#1 - Moving the primary to August has dramatically reduced voter turnout. This means fewer people are making choices for the rest of us. This change was made last year (2007).

As Secretary of State, I will lobby to move the primary to September, immediately after Labor Day. A September primary will provide ample time before the general election to conduct vote-by-mail elections.

We will then see voter turnout restored to their appropriate levels.

#2 - By permitting candidates to state which party they "prefer", the incumbent's new primary system has made a mockery of voter choice. Just like deceptive advertising. For voters to make informed decisions, they must be given accurate, high quality information.

As Secretary of State, I will require candidates to honestly state their party membership.

#3 - The top-two primary dramatically reduces voter choice; there will be far fewer candidates on the ballot in the November general election. Independent and third party candidates have been particularly harmed by the top-two primary.

Consequently, we're certain to see the top-two primary challenged in court, and likely overturned. This will result in yet another disruptive change, further confusing voters. The responsibility lies squarely with the incumbent.

As Secretary of State, I will broker a fair win-win solution for both the voters and the political parties. The first step will be to explore all of the available systems, so that everyone's comparing apples to apples. The next step is for compromise. Perhaps the voters will readily accept an open primary in exchange for adding a "none of the above" choice to every race.

Whatever the arrangement, it's crucial that Washington State adopt a primary system that everyone can live with. The continual upheaval brought on by the incumbent has hurt the voters. We must restore stability to our elections.

Again, thank you for your question.

Cheers, Jason Osgood