Strong Bill That Would Close Primaries Up For Crucial Vote In Tennessee Senate Committee On Tuesday

House Bill 1159 (HB1159), which would require voters to select an official political party affiliation was deferred until 2026 earlier this week after Lynn asked for it to be rolled. 

Lynn’s legislative assistant, Carson Baddeley, told us that Lynn’s decision to roll the bill until next year was due to a similar bill making it to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Committee. 

House Bill 0886 (HB0886) sponsored by Representative Chris Todd (R-Madison County-District 73) was placed behind the budget on Wednesday. 

While being placed behind the budget can sometimes be the kiss of death for a piece of legislation, Todd’s stronger bill has no significant fiscal impact and broad support among members of the House. Todd told The Tennessee Conservative that the bill had garnered 40 co-sponsors as of Thursday. 

Todd’s legislation would require 90 days notice in writing in order to change one’s party affiliation. In addition, the status of voters registered with a minor party, failing to maintain recognition beyond the current election year, will be changed by county election commissions to “unaffiliated” on their permanent voter registration record. 

The companion Senate Bill 0777 (SB0777) sponsored by Senator Adam Lowe (R-Calhoun-District 1) must gain enough votes in the Senate State and Local Government Committee on Tuesday in order for the bill to continue to advance. 

The actual language of HB0886/SB0777 can be found in this amendment, linked HERE.

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.

If closing primary elections is an important issue to you, make sure to contact members of the Senate  Committee before SB0777 is heard on Tuesday.

Contact information for members of the Committee is listed below. 

Sen.richard.briggs@capitol.tn.gov, sen.page.walley@capitol.tn.gov, sen.tom.hatcher@capitol.tn.gov, sen.todd.gardenhire@capitol.tn.gov, sen.ed.jackson@capitol.tn.gov, sen.sara.kyle@capitol.tn.gov, sen.adam.lowe@capitol.tn.gov, sen.kerry.roberts@capitol.tn.gov, sen.jeff.yarbro@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.