Opinion: Why primary election is primary

Like the dandelions of spring, the heat of summer brings political yard signs announcing the primary election on Aug. 3.

Primary elections, where voters could choose the nominees of their parties, began in the early 20th century. Boss Tweed, one of the corrupt bosses of Tammany Hall in the late 19th century, used to say "I don't care who does the electing, so long as I can do the nominating."

The reaction against Tweed, and others like him, led to the creation of the primary system, where "the people" do the nominating. Over the last century the primary system has grown so now most states use it for choosing their nominees for most (but not all) offices.

Yet, because it's "only a primary" most voters will skip this election and stay home. If we are lucky we might get a 20 percent turnout in August, less than half of what we will probably get in November. The last time we had better than a 20 percent turnout was 2002. Most years it is less than 20 percent.

The turnout has been slowly declining in the last few decades and some people blame it on the choice of an early August election date in Michigan, when many voters might be on vacation. That's possible, but states with different primary dates don't have a much better record.

What might also turn voters off is that primaries can be confusing elections.

First, there are often a lot of candidates, competing for the same office, many of whom may not be very well known.

Second, since primaries are meant to nominate candidates, not elect officeholders, most states only allow a voter to vote in the primary of one party — either Democratic or Republican. Most states have a closed primary, where you register with the party of your choice when you register to vote. Then, at the primary election, you are given only the ballot of your chosen party.

Michigan, like only a few other states, has an open primary, where we don't register as a party member. In Michigan, a voter can vote in the primary election of either party, but not both. The choice is made privately in the voting booth.

This may seem "fairer" in the sense that voters don't have to publicly reveal their Democratic or Republican leanings, but it does open the door to the mischief of "crossover voting," where a supporter of one party could vote in the primary of another, picking a weaker candidate to beat in the general election.

For example, if I was a loyal Democrat and there was no serious contest in my party, I could vote Republican and vote for their weakest candidates, hoping to defeat that person in November.

But for all its complexities, you could make a good argument that the August primary might be more important that the November election, at least for many offices. That's because of the fact that, while Michigan is overall a fairly competitive state, many parts of Michigan are strongly for one party.

Democrats usually win in most of Genesee County.

Right now, of the five members of the state House of Representatives in Genesee County, four of them are Democrats. Of the two state senators in Genesee County, both of them are Democrats. Of the nine members on the county Board of Commissioners, eight of them are Democrats.

For most of these offices, (and many others) whoever wins the Democratic nomination in August is likely to win in November.

Republicans have the same advantage in the Thumb or much of western Michigan.

Michigan isn't particularly unusual in this. Similar patterns are true for much of the rest of the nation.

So even though it's August, it's hot, there are a lot of candidates on the ballot and the rules can be confusing, for most of us the primary election might be the most important one of the year.

At least for many offices, "the primary is primary."

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Paul Rozycki is a professor of political science at Mott Community College. He has lived in Flint since 1969 and has been involved with and observed Flint politics for many years. He is author of Politics and Government in Michigan (with Jim Hanley) and A Clearer Image: The History of Mott Community College.