Louisiana's first closed primary election in more than two decades will take place on May 16, and some voters are not happy with the move away from the usual jungle primary for this year's Congressional elections.
According to one local official, some voters have complained to her that closed primaries disenfranchise them.
"(They) feel that it's taking away their choice because some of them voted across party lines."
New Orleans Registrar of Voters Lisa Marie Manning Bridges says some voters are calling her office to voice their displeasure with the closed party primary system.
"Now, Democrats can only vote for Democrats, and Republicans can only vote for Republicans," Manning Bridges said. "No-party (voters) would have to choose one or the other, but whoever they choose, that's (for whom) they're voting."
She says voters who have expressed their disappointment want to vote for the best candidate, not necessarily the best person on their party's ballot.
"Some people have expressed that they think that it's taking away their choice," Manning Bridges said. "I may have always voted Republican, but then I saw a Democrat that I like, or vice versa. I may always have voted Democrat, but then I saw a Republican that I like."
Early voting for the closed party primaries for U. S. House, U. S. Senate, Louisiana Supreme Court, and Louisiana Public Service Commission begins on Saturday.
The November general election will be an open race. However, the winner needs only a plurality of the vote--not a majority--to win.
