Image Credit: TN Republican Party & Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
A bill that could finally close primary elections in Tennessee is scheduled to be heard in the House Elections and Campaign Finance Subcommittee on Tuesday, March 25th, 2025.
House Bill 1159 (HB1159), sponsored by Representative Susan Lynn (R-Mount Juliet-District 57), would require voters to select an official political party affiliation.
The companion Senate Bill 0831 (SB0831) is being sponsored by Senator Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald-District 28).
Voters would be required to “designate on the voter registration record a political party with which the voter is affiliated in order to vote in primary elections for such political party.”
For the purposes of the legislation, an “unaffiliated voter” is a voter who chooses not to affiliate with a “statewide political party or recognized minor political party and who has no political party preference.”
At the time of registration, should a voter fail or refuse to designate a party affiliation, they will be recorded as “unaffiliated” by the county election commission.
State law, as it currently stands, makes it illegal to vote in a party’s primary when you are not a bonafide member of the party and you do not intend to affiliate with them in the future. However, the law lacks a mechanism of enforcement that has any real substance.
Attempts to close primary elections have failed in recent years with critics insisting that independent voters could be disenfranchised but support for political party registration among conservatives is strong.
At this point in the legislative session two years ago, the House Local Government Committee had already killed multiple bills that would have ensured party election integrity in Tennessee.
One of those bills, filed by former Representative Bryan Richey, was brought back last year.
Similar to Lynn’s bill, Richey’s legislation would have prescribed “a process by which a person must declare a statewide political party or recognized minor party affiliation before voting in a primary election” but included a provision that would have authorized unaffiliated voters or Independents to vote in primary elections.
Placed behind the budget, the bill was then taken off notice in the House by Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee Chair Representative Gary Hicks (R-Rogersville-District 9) before ultimately failing in the Senate State and Local Government Committee.
If closing primary elections is an important issue to you, make sure to contact members of the House Elections and Campaign Finance Subcommittee before Lynn’s bill is heard on Tuesday.
Contact information for the members of the subcommittee is listed below.
HB1159 Summary: As introduced, requires a voter to designate on the voter registration record a political party with which the voter is affiliated in order to vote in primary elections for such political party.
Rep.tim.rudd@capitol.tn.gov, rep.rush.bricken@capitol.tn.gov, rep.dan.howell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.tom.leatherwood@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jerome.moon@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jason.powell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.dave.wright@capitol.tn.gov
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
