NJ Attorney General: If You Want a Meaningful Vote, Join a Party

Shawn M GriffithsShawn M Griffiths
Published: 29 Jul, 2014
1 min read

(Newark, N.J.) — In May, New Jersey Secretary of State Kim Guadagno filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed to defend the individual voting rights of New Jersey voters, regardless of their party affiliation, including the 47 percent of New Jersey voters who have chosen not to affiliate with a party at all.

The plaintiffs argue that New Jersey’s closed partisan primary system violates an individual's right to vote because: (1) the primary conditions a voter's right to participate on giving up their right to not join a private political party, (2) the partisan primary effectively dilutes the voting power of non-party voters, and (3) the system violates New Jersey’s own constitutional prohibition against the private use of taxpayer funds.

On July 28, New Jersey Secretary of State Kim Guadagno submitted a reply on behalf of New Jersey. The State argues:

“...a voter who feels disenfranchised because of a regulation that conditions participation in primary elections on party membership ‘should simply join the party.’” p. 4-5

“Thus, the relief plaintiffs seek here... would, if granted, contravene these precedents and uproot one of the hallmarks of our electoral system, the partisan primary...” p. 2

“[No courts] have recognized that unaffiliated voters have a fundamental right to participate in primary elections even when those elections are an integral part of the electoral process.” p. 2

Read all motions and court filings related to the New Jersey lawsuit on the Independent Voter Project's website.

In this article

You Might Also Like

Nevada Dems Block Independent Redistricting from Going before Voters – Again!
Nevada Dems Block Independent Redistricting from Going before Voters – Again!
With deep frustration, Vote Nevada PAC announced it is withdrawing its ballot initiative to create an independent redistricting commission -- a proposal meant to bring openness, accountability, and fairness to how Nevada’s political maps are drawn....
03 Oct, 2025
-
5 min read
court gavel.
Virtual Discussion: The Fight for Equal Independent Voting Rights Makes it to SCOTUS
Every major voting rights movement in U.S. history – whether successful or not – has intertwined with landmark litigation. This was the case for women’s suffrage. It was the case for civil rights. And it is the case in the ongoing effort to protect the right of all voters to have equal participation in taxpayer-funded elections – something millions of independent voters are denied across the U.S....
29 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read
Supreme Court building
SCOTUS Considers Challenge to Closed Primaries -- Here's Why It Is Such a Big Deal
In a dramatic step forward for litigation challenging closed primaries, the U.S. Supreme Court has indicated they are going to conference to discuss whether to grant a writ of certiorari to Polelle v. Florida Secretary of State; a case challenging Florida's closed primaries that Open Primaries has supported since its inception....
26 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read
Proposition 50 voter guide
California Prop 50: Partisan Power Play or Necessary Counterpunch?
November 4 marks a special election for what has become the most controversial ballot measure in California in recent memory: Proposition 50, which would circumvent congressional districts drawn by the state’s independent redistricting commission for a legislative-drawn map....
01 Oct, 2025
-
9 min read
court gavel.
Virtual Discussion: The Fight for Equal Independent Voting Rights Makes it to SCOTUS
Every major voting rights movement in U.S. history – whether successful or not – has intertwined with landmark litigation. This was the case for women’s suffrage. It was the case for civil rights. And it is the case in the ongoing effort to protect the right of all voters to have equal participation in taxpayer-funded elections – something millions of independent voters are denied across the U.S....
29 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read
Supreme Court building
SCOTUS Considers Challenge to Closed Primaries -- Here's Why It Is Such a Big Deal
In a dramatic step forward for litigation challenging closed primaries, the U.S. Supreme Court has indicated they are going to conference to discuss whether to grant a writ of certiorari to Polelle v. Florida Secretary of State; a case challenging Florida's closed primaries that Open Primaries has supported since its inception....
26 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read