As a native Alabamian from a long line of Republicans, I’m deeply troubled by House Bill 541 and the push to close Alabama’s primaries. I attended the Senate committee hearing on Tuesday and had the privilege to speak. I was struck by the gap between the arguments offered by proponents and what Alabama’s election data actually shows.
Advocates for HB541 insist the primary is merely a private party selection process. The “real election” where all voters get their say is in November, they argue. That might resemble high school civics, but in Alabama, it’s unfortunately fiction.
In 2022, over half of the state legislature — 72 of 140 — took office without facing a contested election of any kind. No primary contest, no major party opposition in November.
For the rest, all but seven seats were effectively decided in the primary because one party or the other dominated so significantly in the general election. The deciding votes for the entire legislature came from just 14 percent of the state’s 3.7 million registered voters. To put it another way, 1.4 million people showed up in November when many elections in the state were already decided. For the majority of Alabamians, the primary isn’t a minor, internal, “private” party exercise. It is the election.
Supporters of HB541 claim Democrats are infiltrating Republican primaries to “dilute” conservative candidates. But where is the evidence? Republicans hold a three-to-one supermajority across both legislative chambers, hold every statewide office and five of seven U.S. House seats. Republican candidates routinely win elections by 40 to 70 points. If a crossover conspiracy is underway, it is a rip-roaring failure.
The facts confirm this. Among the nearly one million Alabama voters who participated in any of the last three Republican primaries, only 5 percent have ever voted in a single Democratic primary. The crossover issue is a talking point. It’s also a red herring. But it’s no crisis.
All the manufactured drama over our long-standing election system suddenly turning Alabama into a liberal bastion might be laughable if not for the consequences this legislation would have on our state. Closing primaries will lock hundreds of thousands of voters out of the only elections that now typically matter throughout much of Alabama. That is an injustice to Alabama voters. It is also a formula for less accountability by officials elected in primaries that are restructured to ensure further reductions in participation by voters. A party that has taken pride over the years in its spirit of competition and government accountability should be concerned about that, in principle and by its practical and negative effects.
Closing primaries won’t make the Republican party stronger. It’s already got that going for it. But it will make incumbents more comfortable, our primaries more insular, and tell thousands of Alabama voters — many of them conservative-leaning independents who reliably vote Republican in November — that their participation is no longer welcome or needed.
There’s a better way. Preserving a system that has worked well is smart. And it keeps the door open for increased participation and competition, which is good for all Alabamians.
