Idaho voters’ last chance to switch parties is today

Today is the last chance for Idaho voters who wish to change their political party affiliation in order to vote in the May 17 closed primary election.

Electors can designate their party affiliation with the Democratic, Republican, Constitution or Libertarian party or select no party affiliation by filing online voter registration, filling out a new voter registration card or filling out a party affiliation declaration form.

Only those electors affiliated with the Republican, Constitution or Libertarian parties may request a ballot for the primary of that party. There is no such restriction for people who are affiliated with the Democratic party.

Maxine Miller, a spokeswoman for the League of Women Voters, said the organization started to inform voters about a month ago of the deadline today to change their party affiliation.

“We went through a number of stages of trying to get the information out,” Miller said. “But there’s been very little information in the newspaper. So I would say the efforts have not really been successful in getting voters information about this primary before (today).”

Today’s deadline applies only to people who wish to switch their party affiliation to vote in the primary. Miller said Idaho law provides that if someone is unaffiliated at the time of the primary, they can request whatever ballot they wish at the polling place.

There is an attempt in the Idaho Legislature, however, to close that loophole, and Miller said it is uncertain if that will be successful before people go to the polls May 17.

“Unless this (proposed) bill passes with the emergency clause, you can request any ballot” at the polls, she said. “The Democrats do not have a closed primary. Republican, Constitution and Libertarian parties are all closed, but the Constitution and Libertarian parties don’t have candidates, so there’s no ballots for those (at the primary).

“So the Republicans are the only ones that (require) you have to be affiliated with the Republicans if you want to vote in the primary. ... That is one of the reasons that (the League of Women Voters is) opposing that piece of legislation. It will affect over 300,000 unaffiliated voters if that passes.”

The current provision allowing unaffiliated voters to choose a party at the polling place was underscored in 2014 by the Idaho Supreme Court when it allowed the Republican party to close its primary, she said.

Miller said she could not comment on speculation that some Democrats and unaffiliated voters have been registering as Republicans to vote in the primary in order to keep out far-right candidates.

“However it is our legal right to make a choice about what party we want to affiliate with and what ballot we choose,” Miller said. “That’s a voter’s right. So when the parties make it difficult for the voters to exercise their constitutional right, then we have a responsibility to know what our rights are and to proceed.”

Jim Evans, chairman of the Nez Perce County Republican Party, said among the current list of people who are applying for precinct captains, he spots one or two who may be suspicious, “but that is their right to do what they want. God bless America for that.”

Evans said people who are hiding their motives are usually revealed but he does not have knowledge of someone who has been a Democrat trying to fill a precinct position for a Republican campaign or changing parties for nefarious reasons.

Evans added that his opinion is that the Republican Party has not been very good at selecting candidates at the local level.

“We are changing things within our local party and how we seek people to fill those positions with more vetting,” Evans said. “We are seeking people who believe in the party platform — the real platform, not the one that is imagined that people think it should say. ... Again, true colors come out in that discussion and then it comes down to how good a politician they truly are.”

Miller noted that recently passed laws in several states that make it more difficult for people to vote is a worry.

“This is not going to go away any time soon,” she said. “These voter-suppression bills have been floating around nationally and there is a national movement to limit and restrict voters’ rights. And voting is the way we protect our democracy and our liberty. That’s our only right.

“We don’t have any choice but to keep moving forward with exercising our right to vote and making sure this is our government, not theirs (meaning people who would restrict voting rights).”

Two other voting deadlines besides today include April 22 to pre-register to vote and May 6 to request an absentee ballot. A person must be a registered voter to request an absentee ballot.

Additional voting information may be found online at voteidaho.gov or at local county clerks offices.

The filing period for candidates for this election year also ends today at 5 p.m.

Hedberg may be contacted at khedberg@lmtribune.com.