Consider this wacky football scenario: What if only fans who declared their team loyalty before the game are allowed to watch the Super Bowl? Yep, unless you pick a team, you can’t get into the stadium. This is similar to how closed primary elections work, in which only registered voters of a specific political party can participate in that party's primary. That’s the brilliant analogy the Unite America Institute uses in a new, short explainer video describing the highly undemocratic system that dominates American primary elections.
“In most elections, the real contest is not the general election but the party primary held months before,” said Beth Hladick, Policy Director at Unite America. The new video is part of a year-long fellowship project: the Democracy and Public Service Initiative, a partnership between the National Academy of Public Administration and the Bridge Alliance.
The numbers demonstrate the staggering impact of shutting millions of Americans out of our election system. Unite America Institute research shows that, because of our closed primary system, in 2024, 7% of voters elected 87% of Congress. How does this happen? In most congressional districts, the outcome is effectively decided in the primary, not in the general election. Because so many districts are heavily skewed toward one party, the winner of that party's primary is almost guaranteed to win the seat. But with closed primaries, only registered party members can participate, and voter turnout is typically very low—sometimes just a fraction of eligible voters. The 7% figure refers to the small share of eligible voters who actually participate in these deciding primaries, meaning that fewer than one in ten of the electorate chooses nearly nine out of ten members of Congress. “It feels like telling half the fans they can only go to the game after it’s basically over,” said Ted Delicath, co-creator of the video.
Unite America advocates a simple reform to the system: all-candidate primaries. In an all-candidate primary, all voters can participate regardless of party affiliation, and every candidate appears on the same ballot. The top vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the general election. “No party gate, no separate stadium entrance. No, ‘You picked the wrong jersey, so you can’t come in,’” said Hladick. And Unite America Institute’s research shows that all-candidate primaries not only increase voter turnout but also could reduce partisanship in our governance system. “It suggests that reform can help create the conditions for better problem-solving, more collaborative governance, and coalition-building,” said Hladick.
Want to make a difference? Learn more about how primary reform works, share the explainer video with friends, or reach out to your elected representatives to let them know that you want a fairer, more open election system. Join organizations advancing electoral reform or volunteer in your community to help empower more voices in our democracy.
Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jBJYzPpTf4
Bradford Fitch is a Senior Advisor to the Bridge Alliance, former CEO of the Congressional Management Foundation, and author of “Citizen’s Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials."
