(WJAR) — With Election Day two weeks away, Massachusetts voters are weighing a ballot question that could change how primary elections operate in the state.
Question 3 would eliminate the state’s traditional party primaries in favor of a primary where all candidates compete, and the top two overall advance to the November election regardless of political party.
Mike Cerullo reports on Massachusetts ballot Question 3 for NBC 10 News.
“I think it’ll allow more people to become part of the political process,” New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell said.
Mitchell said systems like what’s described in Question 3 have worked well in many municipal elections in Massachusetts and hopes to see it pass statewide.
“We’ve heard people complain for years that they didn’t feel like they could vote in a primary because the candidate they were interested in was in the other primary, and so, they weren’t able to pull a ballot so that they could vote for that person,” Mitchell said. “So now with 65% of the states registered voters unenrolled, I think it’s pretty clear that people would rather have sort of an ‘a la carte’ approach.”
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell voices opinion on Question 3. (WJAR)
Critics of Question 3 said they believe a top-two primary would favor candidates with better financial resources and would make it more difficult for third-party and independent candidates to advance to the general election.
“We already have a problem with money in politics, and this will really ratchet up that problem,” said Jordan Berg Powers, the chair of the No on 3 campaign.
Opponents also warn that the system could result in two candidates from the same party advancing to November, leaving voters without a candidate from another party on their ballots in the general election.
The Massachusetts Statehouse. (WJAR)
“If you’re in a district that is, let’s say, 60% Democratic and only two Republicans run and a bunch of Democrats run, which often happens in an open race, you have the splitting of that 60% into little pieces,” Berg Powers said. “And then the two people who move forward are from the minority party.”
A yes vote on Question 3 supports changing to a top-two primary system.
A no vote on Question 3 supports keeping the current party primary in place.
