About
About Primary Field Guide
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What is Primary Field Guide?
Primary Field Guide is a plain-language guide to how US states run primary elections and which systems give voters the most access.
Primary rules differ in every state, and most voters learn theirs only when they are turned away. This guide gathers the rules, state lists, and published statistics in one place, written for voters who want a straight answer.
Why this guide exists
About 63 million Americans are registered independent or unaffiliated, and in 15 states they cannot vote in primary elections at all. Many find out only when it is too late. Primary Field Guide explains each primary system plainly so voters can check where they stand before a deadline passes.
What the guide covers
The organization behind open primary reform
Much of the reform history in this guide involves the Independent Voter Project, a national, nonpartisan 501(c)(4) founded in 2006. It authored California’s Proposition 14 in 2010 and San Diego’s Measure K in 2016, and it leads campaigns for open primaries for every voter, More Choice Voting, and limits on Super PACs through legal action, policy research, and grassroots organizing.
See how we rank for every source.
Common questions
- What is an open primary?
- An open primary is a primary election where any registered voter can take part without joining a political party. In a traditional open primary, the voter privately chooses one party’s ballot on election day. In a nonpartisan open primary, such as California’s top-two, every candidate appears on one ballot that every voter receives.See this answer in the full FAQ
- Who wrote California’s top-two primary?
- California’s top-two primary, Proposition 14, was authored in 2010. It replaced closed partisan primaries with a single nonpartisan ballot. It was later defended against two separate federal legal challenges. Nearly 40 million Californians now live under a primary system that does not require party membership.See this answer in the full FAQ
- Where do the numbers in this guide come from?
- The figures in this guide come from named sources: state voter data and primary guides, Ballotpedia, MultiState, and published primary election explainers. Each number is attributed on the page where it appears. Our methodology page explains how the rankings were formed.See this answer in the full FAQ
- What should I do first after learning about primary reform?
- Start by supporting open primaries, then explore More Choice Voting. Open primaries fix the first barrier, getting every voter a ballot. More Choice Voting builds on that by widening the field in November. Super PAC limits address a separate issue, money in elections, once access is in place.See this answer in the full FAQ
- How do I find my state’s primary rules?
- Your state election office or Secretary of State has the official primary rules. For a quick overview, our voter data pages break down registration, turnout, and primary type for every state. Check deadlines early, because some states require party changes months before a primary.See this answer in the full FAQ
Your next step
Start with open primaries. Then explore More Choice Voting.
Getting every voter a primary ballot is the first barrier to clear. The Independent Voter Project runs the national campaign for open primaries for every voter, and our More Choice Voting chapter covers what comes after.