How single-party primary elections are reshaping Congress

Deep Dive Elections How single-party primary elections are reshaping Congress May 30, 20265:00 AM ET By  Eric McDaniel ,  Ashley Lopez "I Voted" stickers are seen as a person casts their ballot in Philadelphia in Pennsylvania's primary on May 19. Matthew Hatcher/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Matthew Hatcher/Getty Images Stay up to date with our Politics newsletter, sent weekly. Congress could soon be more polarized than it already is. And primary elections are a big reason why. Some lawmakers have begun to speak out against closed, single-party primaries, which they see as part of a system that limits voter choice and incentivizes elected officials to prioritize party loyalty over their own political judgment. It's a case long made by advocates of primary reform. "There has been a ratcheting up, a ramping up of both the willingness and the ability of both the Democrats and the Republicans to shape outcomes before the voters get a chance to have a say," John Opdycke, founder and president of the group Open Primaries, told NPR. "And that's really devastating." Sponsor Message In just the past several weeks, GOP primary voters in places like Indiana, Kentucky and Louisiana have forced out state and federal lawmakers who crossed President Trump, including on redistricting. Elections Only a fraction of House seats are competitive. Redistricting is driving that lower The critiques of party primaries come as the mid-decade redistricting efforts, initiated last year by Trump, have further reduced the number of competitive U.S. House districts. More than 90% of seats are now considered relatively safe for one party or the other. This means that primaries — which often are run by the parties themselves, exclude independent voters and see dramatically less participation than general elections — determine nearly all U.S. House members. Nick Troiano, executive director of Unite America, has been pushing for states to hold nonpartisan primaries. He and other...