SD Dems Stay Practical on Primary, Postpone Opening to Indeps

That Sioux Falls paper reports on the South Dakota Democrats' decision to wait until 2010 to open up their primary to independent voters. When Bob Stevens of the state party told us about the possibility of an open primary at our Lake County Dems meeting March 8, I thought it sounded like a great idea. (Again, my political mantra: the more the merrier!) But at yesterday's big party confab in Pierre, the participation had to give way to practicality. As party executive director Rick Hauffe explains it, opening the primary would require approval from the national party. That process would take at least a month, maybe longer if Howard Dean et al. are distracted by other issues. Hauffe says that timeframe puts too much pressure on the Secretary of State's office to get ballots out in time for the big day, June 3.

Now if anybody can leap tall electoral buildings in a single bound, it's our über-capable Secretary of State Chris Nelson. I'd love to see independents have the chance to participate in the most exciting primary season since perhaps 1984 Hart vs. Mondale, and I hate to put mere practicality over participation. But as Florida and Michigan are making clear, you don't take chances with hasty votes. For now, if independents want to participate in our primary, they'll have to bite the bullet (perhaps a very small bullet, depending on your perspective), pop down to the courthouse, and change their registration. But let's give Secretary Nelson and his people the heads-up now, and come 2010, let's see that primary ballot open!