Israel: Likud to lengthen waiting period for voting | Jerusalem Post

Fear of moderate and centrist members who have joined Likud could cause anyone who has joined the party recently to not be able to choose the party’s next Knesset list, Likud officials said Sunday. The party has embarked on a series of steps against the so-called New Likudniks, a group of centrists who want the party to become more moderate and return to values they say existed when Likud was led by then-prime minister Menachem Begin and are no longer prevalent in the party.

Utah: ‘Count My Vote’ readying 2018 ballot initiative to eliminate caucus/convention system for nominating candidates | Utah Policy

UtahPolicy.com has been told that the group behind Count My Vote has decided to run a citizen initiative petition in 2018 that will do away with the caucus/delegate/convention route for candidates and only allow candidates to get on the primary and general election ballots via gathering voter signatures. When CMV’s 2014 petition was in public discussion, various polls showed a majority of citizens supported the so-called “direct primary” option. Also, UtahPolicy is told the new initiative will say that any vacancy in a partisan office will be filled by special election. Right now it is usually filled by appointment by local party officials.

Michigan: Judge: Detroit absentee ballots from primary will stand | The Detroit News

A Wayne County Circuit judge on Tuesday denied an election challenger’s request to have all city absentee ballots from the August primary thrown out, saying there’s no evidence to justify the move and doing so would “disenfranchise” voters. Chief circuit Judge Robert Colombo Jr., following an hour-long discussion in his courtroom, said he would not grant Detroit resident Anita Belle’s request to invalidate the Aug. 8 absentee ballots on claims they were tainted. Colombo said he would not throw out the city’s absentee ballots or enter an injunction to prevent the Detroit Election Commission from using the results “when there is no evidence there was a problem with absentee ballots.”

Utah: Ballot blunder causes confusion at polls | Deseret News

Utah County voters reported continued confusion at the polls Tuesday after more than 68,000 unaffiliated voters received incorrect mail-in primary election ballots. While unaffiliated voters could still cast ballots in the Republican 3rd Congressional District primary race, those who received the incorrect ballot had to bring that ballot to a polling station and choose to affiliate as a Republican to vote in the GOP primary. The situation was confusing for some voters who either discarded the ballot or already sent it in, not knowing their vote in the Republican primary would not be counted unless they went to the polls to affiliate with the party. Utah County elections officials made efforts to correct the issue and clear up confusion by sending out nearly 70,000 mailers, informing those unaffiliated voters that they could bring their ballots to the polls, affiliate with the Republican Party and cast a vote in the 3rd District race.

Colorado: GOP weighs whether to cancel its 2018 primary election | The Denver Post

The Colorado Republican Party is considering whether to cancel the June 2018 primary elections for Congress, the governor’s office and other offices, and instead nominate candidates through an existing caucus process dominated by insiders. The move is permitted under Proposition 108, a ballot question approved in 2016 that overhauls how major-party candidates are selected in Colorado and allows the state’s 1.4 million unaffiliated voters to cast ballots in either the Republican or Democratic primaries. A caveat in the new law allows political parties to opt out of the new law by a 75 percent vote of its central committee.

North Carolina: Change could lead to compromise in push to move up primaries | Associated Press

Both chambers of the General Assembly have agreed that they want to move up North Carolina’s future primary elections for president and statewide offices, but they may have to come up with a compromise about when that change would start. The House on Tuesday voted nearly along party lines to approve a bill that would permanently move the primaries from May to March. But the 71-46 vote came after members agreed to delay the bill’s start date until 2020. Two months ago, the Senate unanimously approved the permanent change, starting in 2018. The measure now returns to the Senate, where lawmakers must decide whether they want to accept the House amendment or force negotiations on a compromise.

California: Trump wouldn’t release his tax returns, so lawmakers move to make it mandatory for California’s primary | Los Angeles Times

Legislation to require presidential candidates to disclose their tax returns in order to gain a spot on California’s presidential primary ballot won passage in the state Senate on Wednesday, but only after a tense debate that largely centered on President Trump. Senate Bill 149 was approved on a strict party-line vote, 27-13. The bill now moves to the state Assembly, and was one of the last bills debated during a marathon session at the state Capitol to consider bills before a Friday deadline for action. The bill would require presidential candidates to file copies of their income tax returns with state elections officials for the five most recent taxable years. Failure to do so would mean their name wouldn’t appear on California’s presidential primary ballot. The legislation was introduced in December, in the wake of Trump’s refusal to disclose his tax returns during the 2016 campaign. The president has continued to reject calls for the information.

California: Lawmakers vote for earlier primary elections | Associated Press

California may hold its presidential primary elections in March after lawmakers in both chambers of the Legislature passed bills Thursday to increase the influence of the nation’s largest and most diverse state. The state Senate passed a bill to move California’s primary from June to the third Tuesday in March. The state Assembly voted to move the primary to the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March. One of the bills must pass both houses and be signed by the governor for the date to change.

Alabama: GOP proposal would prevent crossover voting | Decatur Daily

With a U.S. Senate election later this year and statewide contests in 2018, Republicans are again trying to keep Democrats out of GOP runoffs. “We feel it’s important, simply, that we pick our team and they pick their team,” said Terry Lathan, chairwoman of the Alabama Republican Party. Senate Bill 108, which passed that chamber, and House Bill 372, require the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office to create rules and procedures to keep someone from voting in a runoff if they didn’t vote in the preceding primary.

Colorado: Unaffiliated? You can vote in Colorado’s 2018 party primaries. But should the party you choose be public information? | The Colorado Independent

Next year, unaffiliated voters —the state’s largest voting bloc—for the first time will be able to help choose the Democratic or Republican nominee in a Colorado governor’s race while still remaining unaffiliated. That’s because voters last year passed a ballot measure allowing those who choose not to join a political party to participate in the party primaries. Unaffiliated voters, however, can only pick one primary to vote in— they can’t vote in both.
And here’s something those non-party people should know: The primary they choose could become public information. Colorado’s Republican secretary of state, Wayne Williams, is pushing for such disclosure as he develops rules to implement the new law before the 2018 statewide gubernatorial primaries. He says such transparency is about voter integrity.

Colorado: Critics blast plan to track unaffiliated voters casting ballots in Colorado’s party primaries | The Denver Post

A proposal backed by the Colorado secretary of state to track which primaries independents vote in is drawing fire from critics who say it could undermine the intent of two initiatives that opened party primary elections to unaffiliated voters. If approved, it would allow Colorado’s political parties to obtain voter-specific data on who’s voting in each primary, much as they do with voters who register as Republicans or Democrats. Supporters of such a move, including Republican Secretary of State Wayne Williams and both political parties, say it’s needed to ensure the integrity of the state’s elections. But elections officials in Denver and Arapahoe counties dispute that line of reasoning, saying they don’t need to know that information to properly administer and audit an election.

California: Moving to March primary gaining traction: Legislation on presidential races passes key Assembly committee | San Mateo Daily Journal

Legislation to elevate the political influence of one of the nation’s most populous states by bumping up California’s presidential primary received bipartisan support this week as it heads toward the Assembly floor. Assembly-man Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco, seeks to move California’s typically June primary to the first Tuesday of March during presidential elections. On Wednesday, Mullin’s bill passed 6-1 through the Assembly’s Committee on Elections and Redistricting, garnering support and dissent from two Republicans. The goal is to provide California, the sixth largest economy in the world and where 1 in 8 U.S. voters resides, with a more influential role in deciding presidential nominations for both the Republican and Democratic parties, Mullin said.

Nevada: State flirts with primaries while maligned caucus system prevails | Las Vegas Sun News

Long lines and frustrated voters that accompanied Nevada caucuses in 2016 were not enough to sway lawmakers toward a primary system. Legislative efforts from both parties to return to presidential primaries have failed to gain traction over the years, with the most recent failed push marked by concerns that Nevada would lose political prominence nationally. UNLV political science professor Michael W. Bowers, who took part in the 2016 caucuses, says it was a confused atmosphere for everyone. Volunteers struggled to handle the heavy turnout brought on by supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., he said. Bowers said the primary system would give more people the opportunity to participate and increase voter turnout. State elections officials would likely be better trained to run the primary, and the process would give more voting time to people who work or have religious obligations, such as Sabbath on Saturday.

California: Secretary of State wants primary election right after Iowa, New Hampshire | The Sacramento Bee

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla moved Tuesday to the forefront of a recurring effort to give statewide voters more influence in the presidential primary. Padilla, a Democrat from Los Angeles who is widely seen as a potential candidate for U.S. Senate, said he wants the state’s June 2020 presidential primary moved up to at least the third Tuesday in March, immediately behind Iowa and New Hampshire. Padilla is supporting state legislation, Senate Bill 568 by Sen. Ricardo Lara, that also would authorize the governor to bump up the primary even earlier if other states move up their primary elections.

Delaware: Bills would move local primaries; allow for early voting | The News Journal

Delawareans would be able to vote early, would be automatically registered to vote at the DMV, and would vote in local primary elections and presidential primary at the same time if a trio of bills passes the General Assembly. The goal of all three proposals is to encourage more people to vote, the sponsors say. Rep. David Bentz, D-Christiana, sponsored a bill that would allow citizens to vote in the 10 days leading up to any general, primary or special election. There would be one early-voting polling place in each county, plus one in Wilmington. “We should try to make it so that our elections fit into the people’s schedules, and not where people should have to fit their schedule into the government’s,” Bentz said.

Nevada: Assembly bill could clear way for presidential primary instead of caucus in Nevada | Las Vegas Review-Journal

Nevada’s political parties may have the option of offering voters a presidential primary in 2020 instead of a caucus system. Assembly Bill 293 would allow each political party to have a presidential preference primary instead of a caucus. The move could reshape how Nevada voters help pick the Republican and Democratic nominees for president. “This just adds another option on the menu,” Assemblyman Nelson Araujo, D-Las Vegas, told the Assembly Legislative Operations and Elections Committee on Tuesday. “If both parties still opt into the caucus system that they are using today, they are more than welcome to do so.”

Utah: After caucus chaos, lawmaker wants Utah to pay for primaries | Associated Press

To vote in Utah’s Democratic primary caucus last year, Kellie Henderson of Salt Lake City had to walk at least a mile and wait in line for three hours.
Henderson told Utah lawmakers on Tuesday that she had to trek from her home to the elementary school where her caucus was held because there was no parking nearby. At the school, she had to wait in a line for three hours before overwhelmed party volunteers running the caucus were able to help her cast a ballot. “It was just chaos,” Henderson said Tuesday. Rep. Patrice Arent, D-Millcreek, wants to avoid a similar mess and has sponsored a bill requiring the state to pay for and run a presidential primary every four years. “Political parties should be in the business of trying to win elections, not run them,” Arent said.

New Mexico: Open primary bill moves forward in Senate | Albuquerque Journal

A proposal to open New Mexico’s primary elections to independent voters survived – just barely – its first challenge in the state Senate.
The bill made it out of the Senate Rules Committee on Monday without a recommendation and now heads to the Judiciary Committee, potentially its last stop before reaching the Senate floor. But that was only after a motion to recommend passage of the bill failed on a tie vote. A similar proposal, meanwhile, is also advancing through the House, though it has not yet reached the floor. Monday’s action centered on Senate Bill 205, sponsored by Sen. John Sapien, D-Corrales.

New Hampshire: Lawmaker Proposes Closing Primaries, Cites Potential For Electoral Sabotage | NHPR

The way Rep. Norman Silber sees it, a party primary is supposed to select the best person who represents the values and platform of that particular political party — and allowing undeclared voters to weigh in allows for too much electoral mischief. “It’s not unheard of that some true members of a party who happen to be registered as undeclared choose to vote in the other party’s primary to try to get the worst candidate or at least the one notionally easiest to beat for the general election,” Silber, a Republican from Gilford, told his colleagues at a House Election Law Committee hearing Tuesday morning. “And this applies irrespective of what party you’re registered as.”

Wyoming: Party switching on Wyoming primary day lives on; bill dies | Associated Press

The commonplace Wyoming voter tradition of changing party affiliation at the polls on primary day will live on after a legislative committee killed a bill Thursday that would have made it more difficult for Democrats to vote in Republican primaries and vice versa. Wyoming doesn’t allow cross-party voting on primary day, but voters may switch parties moments before voting. Under the proposal, voters would have been allowed to switch no fewer than 30 days before primary day. The bill made it through the Wyoming House before dying on a 3-0 vote in the Senate Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee. Political parties are private organizations and members only should decide which candidates will represent the parties in the general election, Wyoming Republican Party Chairman Matt Micheli, told the committee in support of the bill.

Utah: Election headaches lead lawmakers to consider measures for relief | The Salt Lake Tribune

Memories of long lines, spoiled ballots and disgruntled voters were on the minds of lawmakers Wednesday when a House panel advanced two bills aimed at improving Utah’s elections. The House Government Operations Committee signed off on a proposal to create a statewide presidential primary and a bill requiring county clerks to pay the postage cost of mail-in ballots and to notify voters if their ballots are invalid. A third bill, making voter registration automatically linked to driver-license applications unless a person opts out, was held in committee, with lawmakers indicating that changes were needed before advancing to the House floor. Rep. Patrice Arent, D-Millcreek, sponsored the presidential primary bill, arguing it would make it easier for Utahns to vote for a presidential candidate while avoiding the confusion and disorganization that occurred at the party caucuses last year. “Political parties should be in the business of trying to win elections,” Arent said, “not run them.” A presidential primary would cost $3 million, she said, with the bill requesting $750,000 each year. “We can do it in pieces or we can do it in one chunk,” Arent said. “But I hope that we can get there.”

Nevada: Lawmaker wants to get rid of partisan primary elections | Reno Gazette-Journal

A state senator introduced a bill on Tuesday that would open Nevada’s primaries from a partisan process to a blanket-style ballot. State Sen. James Settelmeyer, R-Minden, introduced Senate Bill 103 that would vastly change primary elections in Nevada. Currently, primaries are a partisan process with only Republicans voting on a Republican ballot and only Democrats voting on a Democratic ballot. The bill would alter that system, allowing anyone on the ballot – including minor party candidates – with the top two vote-getters moving on to the general election. Anyone regardless of political party would be able to vote in the primaries as well.

Wyoming: Committee votes down presidential primary bill | Wyoming Tribune Eagle

A committee of Wyoming lawmakers on Monday voted down a bill creating a presidential primary election, instead opting to study the issue during the interim. The vote in the House Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee came after concerns were raised by county clerks as to the specifics of how such an election would work, as well as a need by the state Republican Party to change its bylaws to allow for a primary. As proposed, House Bill 201 would have set a separate presidential primary election in April, in addition to the regular primary in August and the general election in November. Although not written into the bill itself, Rep. David Northrup, R-Powell, said the intent is for the political parties to foot the cost of the presidential primary.

France: With French Socialists in Crisis, Manuel Valls and Benoît Hamon Head to Runoff | The New York Times

A furious Jean-Marc Ducourtioux shouted with his fellow union members as they banged on the plexiglass window of a meeting hall in small-town France. Inside was Manuel Valls, the former Socialist prime minister, who was campaigning for president in this bastion of the French left. A member of France’s oldest trade union, Mr. Ducourtioux, 52, was a stalwart Socialist Party voter who once might have been inside, cheering. But no longer. His hands callused by three decades as a metalworker, Mr. Ducourtioux is angry that the Socialist government has failed to stop French automakers from moving factories outside the country, as manufacturing declines in this decaying region. He said he was at risk of losing his job at an automotive subcontractor. “Mr. Valls knew the situation here,” Mr. Ducourtioux said. “He did nothing.” France’s presidential election this year is being closely watched as a barometer of European public disaffection, and no party is more visibly out of favor than the governing Socialists. President François Hollande, a Socialist, is so deeply unpopular that he is not running for re-election.

France: In Primaries, Dire Predictions for the Left | VoA News

Five years after a triumphant electoral sweep that returned it to power for the first time in a decade, France’s ruling Socialist Party is weak, deeply unpopular and ideologically divided ahead of the first round Sunday of presidential primaries. Some even warn it risks implosion. Voters are seeking other faces and parties after a leftist tenure that saw three major terrorist attacks, record unemployment and the fallout of Europe’s migrant crisis, which left its mark on the streets of Paris and in Calais’ now-dismantled Jungle camp. The far-right National Front party is widely expected to dominate the first round of presidential elections in April, reflecting a wider populist backlash in Europe and the U.S., where President Donald Trump took office Friday. “There’s a distrust, a dearth of support for the left for a number of reasons,” said analyst Jean Petaux of Sciences Po Bordeaux University. “Some believe it betrayed its leftist ideals, others that it didn’t go far enough in enacting reforms.”

Colorado: Voters dump presidential caucuses for primaries | The Hill

Colorado voters will pick their presidential nominees via primaries in 2020 after Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) signed two voter-passed propositions into law on Tuesday. Voters approved Proposition 107, which eliminates presidential preference caucuses, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin in November. Voters passed Proposition 108, which allows all voters to participate in partisan primary elections, by a similar margin. The new rules mean all Colorado voters will be allowed to participate in any presidential primary they choose four years from now. Delegates allocated by the primaries will be bound to the winners at national party conventions, under the new state law.

Minnesota: State to ditch caucuses in favor of presidential primary | MPR

On Jan. 1, Minnesota joins the majority of U.S. states in choosing its presidential candidates in primary elections. Minnesota has used caucuses to choose presidential candidates throughout its voting history, save for three elections. While the first presidential primary under the new law won’t be held until March 2020, the system officially goes on the books Jan. 1, 2017. The shift from a caucus system to primaries is the most notable of the new laws taking effect in Minnesota at the change of the year. The others deal with minor changes to workers’ compensation and life insurance laws that won’t much affect the general public.

Minnesota: State Switches from Caucus to Primary Election System | Alpha News

Starting with the 2020 presidential race, Minnesota will replace its caucus system with a primary election. The change will allow Minnesotans to vote all day instead of having to show up at a specific time on a precinct caucus night. March 3, 2020 is the date set for the first presidential primary, unless an agreement is reached by state leaders to change the date. The state’s political parties may still choose to hold caucuses, and the primary election for other federal, state and local office will continue to be held in August. Over the past few presidential election years, Minnesota’s caucus system has been criticized by some as a means for the parties to prevent some people from engaging in voting for lesser-known candidates or those not supported by party leadership. The caucus format also was viewed as less-accessible for some voters: instead of having a full day to vote, people were required to show up to their precinct caucus during a specific window of time if they wanted their vote counted. Long lines and limited space in many of the caucus locations frustrated many voters and were viewed as a way for party elites to “skew” election turnout.

New York: Primary Voter Purge Still Under Investigation Amid Calls For Reform | Observer

The Empire State is a Democratic Party stronghold and was a vital turning point in the primaries. Yet by the end of April, the New York Democratic primary had the second lowest voter turnout (19.7 percent) of all Democratic primaries, behind Louisiana. Though Hillary Clinton had a comfortable lead in pledged delegates, Sen. Bernie Sanders was experiencing a surge, winning the previous seven out of eight states. A potential win in New York could have proved to be a catalyst for Sanders’ comeback, but the foundation of the New York Democratic Party was not set up in his favor. The primary was constricted by rules that promoted voter suppression, coupled with issues that have yet to be explained or adequately addressed. Some 126,000 voters were inexplicably purged from voter rolls in Brooklyn during the Democratic primary. The New York Attorney General’s Office would not comment on the purge as it is still under investigation. Two election officials, Diane Haslett-Rudiano and Betty-Ann Canizio Aquil, were suspended in the wake of the controversy. But the purge was just one of many issues that arose during the primary, most of which occurred in the New York City area, where Clinton’s victory in the state primary was solidified.