Republican primary won't close for First-in-the-Nation — but it still might next year

The state Republican Party passed a resolution at its convention in January that would close its primary to unaffiliated voters. It won’t be in effect for the upcoming presidential election and remains “nonbinding,” according to Secretary of State David Scanlan, but there is appetite in the NHGOP to pursue a closed primary in the future.  

The resolution, authored by former gubernatorial candidate and former Franklin City Councilor Karen Testerman, “adopts the rule that only voters who register as Republicans 30 days prior to the primary election day may receive and mark a Republican ballot for the primary election.” 

Currently, voters in New Hampshire registered as undeclared may request either party’s ballot at polling stations on Election Day. The state’s deadline for voters to change their party affiliation ahead of the upcoming primary was Oct. 6.

“The law does provide for political parties in New Hampshire to determine who can participate in their primary election,” Scanlan said in an interview Friday. To change the rules of their primary, per RSA 659:14, parties must write a letter to the Secretary of State’s Office notifying the change prior to the opening for the filing period in that race, Scanlan said. “I have received no such written statement from the chair of either political party to do anything different than we've been doing for decades.” 

There are more undeclared voters in New Hampshire than there are voters registered with either party, according to figures from the Secretary of State’s Office after the 2022 midterms, with 276,507 registered Republicans, 282,356 registered Democrats and 320,057 undeclared.

Testerman’s resolution, according to Scanlan, also contradicts state law because its proposed 30-day deadline for changing party affiliation contradicts the legal deadline of the beginning of the filing period.

NHGOP Chair Chris Ager brought the resolution to Scanlan promptly after it was passed, he said in an interview, and Scanlan informed him that it “wouldn’t pass muster.” While Ager said he “took it seriously,” he also said it would be irresponsible as chair to pursue the resolution knowing its legal holes.

Ager wouldn’t say whether he supports the idea of closing the primary, but is open to it being considered.

“We haven’t had a rigorous review or debate,” he said. How a closed primary might affect chances of success in the general and whether the Democratic party closes it primary would both factor into that research. 

“The next opportunity to address this issue is Jan. 13, 2024, at our next Annual Meeting. If a legal by-law was adopted, it could be in force for the 2024 state primary,” Ager wrote in a public statement in early October. “My suggestion to the sponsors is to bring forth a By-Law Amendment that complies with State Law for consideration and critical analysis of the impact by the entire Committee. I will help sponsors through the process as desired to ensure the activity meets required standards. My primary purpose is to help get Republicans elected and represent the views of the State Committee.” Ager said he issued this statement because state committee members had asked whether the resolution would be implemented for the presidential primary.

Testerman told The Daily Sun she disagrees with the secretary’s reading of state law and believes the primary is closed unless a party explicitly opens it to undeclared voters.

Citizens for Belknap, a local nonpartisan PAC which focuses on defeating candidates it views as “extremist,” condemned the resolution in a statement Wednesday. A media release described closed primaries as a means of silencing undeclared voters, describing those in Belknap County as decisive, moderating voices in 2022.

“If the resolution document is accurate, independent voters in Belknap County and around the state will be outraged by this effort to deny New Hampshire citizens a cherished right which they have held for decades,” said Al Posnack, the PAC’s co-chair.

There is an appetite in the party to pursue closing the primary in the future — Belknap GOP Chair Gregg Hough said in an interview Friday he supported the resolution. He was in favor of a closed primary proposal being revisited in the future and said if someone else didn’t sponsor it, he would.

Primaries are meant to select the candidate who best represents the party, Hough said. Allowing undeclared voters to weigh in on that choice — whether they are like-minded independent voters or partisans from the other side of the aisle aiming to choose their opponents — Hough said betrayed that intent and “cheats” party members.

“It would be like the Yankees and the Red Sox play, but the Yankees get to pick who the Red Sox players are,” Hough said. “Who's gonna win?” He added that he felt this dynamic had more impact in local elections — including the primary he lost in 2022 — than in statewide or federal ones.

Similarly, Testerman pointed to efforts, most notably by Republican candidate Chris Christie, to convince Democrats in New Hampshire to register as undeclared and take a Republican ballot on primary day for the express purpose of voting against frontrunner Donald Trump.

“If you want to go to an undeclared status, that's fine. But you should not then be allowed to come into our party — or any specific party, it doesn't matter which party it is — and now tell them who is going to represent them on the ballot at the general election,” Testerman said.

If voters want to participate in a party’s primary, they should be ready to commit to it by registering, Hough and Testerman each said.

“If you can't commit to a party for legitimate reasons, then you certainly shouldn't be doing it for the nefarious reasons,” Hough said.

In 2022, the number of unaffiliated voters who voted in Republican primaries — more than 45,000 — was nearly double the number who voted in Democratic primaries — just under 24,000. 

Hough emphasized that the large number of undeclared voters in New Hampshire is a positive thing. But when asked what role undeclared or independent voters should play in a primary system, he said, “I don't have an answer.”