A former Republican lawmaker is advocating for Ohio to secure the primary election system and stop party raiding.
Currently, Ohio voters do not need to specify a party when registering. By requesting the ballot of the party primary they want at the time of voting, they can cast a ballot in either the Republican or Democratic primaries. Additionally, voters can switch between parties during various elections throughout the year.
According to former Ohio Congressman Jim Renacci, it doesn’t seem right to give someone the right to vote in a group they aren’t a part of. But that is precisely what is allowed to occur under Ohio’s current political system.
“Loyal Democrats are permitted to vote in a Republican primary, or vice versa, to influence the outcome or sabotage the nomination process. We are not looking to close the primary we want to secure the Ohio primary and end party raiding,” Renacci told The Ohio Star.
Renacci told The Star that dozens of states utilize this open primary system, and although Ohio is already a closed primary state, the laws are very general. Voters from both parties have historically exploited the system.
Rush Limbaugh, a late conservative radio host, urged Republicans to vote in Democratic primaries in 2008 to reduce former President Barack Obama’s prospects of winning.
Liberal Democrats participated in Republican primary elections last year in an effort to defeat the candidates backed by former President Donald Trump.
Before 2011, Ohioans who wanted to vote for more than one party in the primary had to sign a loyalty pledge in case they were challenged. However, former Secretary of State and current Lt. Governor Jon Husted declared in 2011 that no one could make a challenge unless the election official had “personal knowledge that the voter is a member of a different party.”
Renacci told The Star that it’s essential to secure Ohio’s primary election ahead of the 2024 presidential election so that Democrats and Republicans can nominate their best candidates without influence from the other party.
Next May, Republican primary voters will also decide who will oppose U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in the fall. Republican State Senator Matt Dolan (R-Chagrin Falls) and Republican Businessman Bernie Moreno have declared their candidacy, and Republicans anticipate several more contenders. Since Ohio has shifted to the right in statewide and federal races since 2016, Brown is one of the more vulnerable Senate Democrats in the 2024 cycle.
“Sherrod Brown will not need Democrats to support him in his primary. So Democrats will be driven over to raid the Republican election and determine who the Republican candidate will be,” Renacci told The Star.
Renacci told The Star that he has been talking to Ohio legislators about securing the primary, and he noted that so far, all of the Republicans he has spoken to have been open to the concept. He asserted that Ohio must put an end to “party raiding” in order to guarantee that party loyalists elect the candidates they like. To cast a ballot in the spring primaries, voters must identify their party by December 31st.
According to Ohioans For Responsible Government, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said that he supports securing the Ohio primary election system and that “allowing the raiding of primaries from outside parties is completely absurd and contributes to a lack of trust in our election system.”
“The simple solution is this, instead of letting people show up in a bus paid for by some leftist group, why not make them decide to switch parties far in advance? Make them actually register as a member of the Republican party or actually register as a member of the Democrat party. That is the best solution.” LaRose said.
The Star reached out to LaRose for comment but did not receive one before press time.
There isn’t currently any legislation in place to close Ohio’s primary. However, Renacci told The Star that he is closely looking at legislation for securing primary elections from Kentucky. His “goal is to do whatever I can to get it in place before 2024.”
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Jim Renacci” by Jim Renacci. Background Photo “Election Day” by Phil Roeder. CC BY 2.0.
