Should Virginia (sometimes) shift the date of its June primaries?

By Rick Sincere | Friday, January 13th, 2012 | Virginia

Delegate Mark Cole (R-Fredericksburg), chairman of the House Privileges & Elections Committee, has proposed a law that would shift the dates of primary elections for the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate (and occasionally other offices) to correspond to the date of the presidential primary, in those years in which a presidential primary takes place.

Currently, Virginia law calls for primary elections for those offices to be filled in a November election to be held on the second Tuesday in June.

I can think of several reasons to oppose Cole’s proposal (designated HB55).

First, it creates different election schedules for presidential and non-presidential years. This will be confusing, at best, and for no good reason. There certainly would be pressure from the state parties and ambitious politicians to maintain the June primary during odd-numbered years, when the General Assembly and Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General are all being elected. Moreover, why should congressional candidates run in a March primary in 2016 but a June primary in 2018? It makes no sense.

Second, it would require a wholesale shifting of the election calendar, including the “close of books” for voter registration applications, filing deadlines for certificates of candidacy, circulating and validating candidate petitions, and adjusting to the needs of third-party and independent candidates for public office.

This is, to be sure, an administrative matter, but when a state has major elections every year (as Virginia does), this is an added but unnecessary burden on election officials (State Board of Elections, local Electoral Boards, General Registrars) and on candidates and political parties.

Third, it offers an opportunity for mischief if Virginia decides to play the game, as it did in 2008, of holding an early presidential primary to have a purportedly greater impact on the selection process. Can you imagine what it would be like for candidates running for Congress (or even local office) in November, to also have to campaign for their parties’ nominations in February or even — it’s not impossible — January? And at the same time compete for attention with the massive presidential campaign machines?

In November, down-ticket candidates only have to contend with two major-party candidates for president, and in fact may cooperate with one of them. During the primary season, there could be a half-dozen or more major-party candidates, all wanting the same air time, column inches, and rubber-chicken dinners as the local candidates — and none running cooperative or coordinated campaigns with their down-ticket brethren.

Holding congressional primaries so early in the year would be a disservice to both candidates and voters, who will have just completed an election cycle in the previous November. Voters should have ample opportunity to vet candidates before deciding whether to give them their parties’ nomination for the general election, and the months between November and June have provided them with that kind of opportunity up to now. Could a shorter period of November to March (or February) be adequate?

June might not the best time to hold a party primary. There are arguments against it, such as that having the primary in early summer, often just as schools are dismissed, depresses voter turnout because most people are not paying attention to politics and paying more attention to their vacations at the beach. (Some states, such as Wisconsin, hold their primaries in September before the November election, after the Labor Day launch date of most political campaigns.) There could be good reason to move the June primary to another date, but that date should be the same every year. If so, we should discuss it.

I could only support this legislation if it includes some kind of guarantee that the presidential primary would never take place in January, February, or March, and that the coincident primaries would only be allowed to be held in April or later. The month of May, the once-traditional date in Virginia for local elections, might be ideal.

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