Party Switching For The Primary?
Political party switching idea gains little traction
By Randy Krehbiel World Staff Writer
The stampede of registered Democrats to the Republican Party for this year’s GOP primary turned out to be more like rush hour in Cleora.
Originally, the thought was that many Democrats, presumably educators or parents, would switch parties to vote in the Republican state superintendent primary between Joy Hofmeister and incumbent Janet Barresi. (A third Republican candidate, Brian Kelly, will also be on the ballot.)
The rather-switch-than-fight theory gained traction after U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn announced his retirement in January, and it soon became clear his replacement would be all but chosen in the Republican primary.
But, from mid-January until April 1 — the last day voters could change party affiliation before the June 24 primary and Aug. 26 runoff — the Republican net gain among “switchers” was about 3,450.
That’s two-tenths of 1 percent of all registered voters, and four-tenths of 1 percent of all registered Republicans.