Perry Stein makes the case against closed primaries, arguing that they tend to encourage polarization. From a self-interested perspective, Virginia Republicans might consider whether closed primaries will help the party reach new constituencies or if it will shift the state to the left.
Stein gets a lot of it right but misses a few points. As a very active party member in northern Virginia, let me share a few thoughts.
The pledge he refers to has since been rescinded by party chairman Pat Mullins
The big driver behind party registration is a desire to get rid of the convention system. Right now Republicans are justly wary of open primaries because Democrats have bee known to come and vote for our weakest candidate. Conventions for state-wide offices are perceived to be a major pain because you have to go to Richmond for a very long day where you basically sit for hours to cast one vote. With a closed primary very few Democrats will register as Republicans so the danger passes and we won't have to truck to Richmond.
Closed primaries may limit participation, but conventions are even worse . Very few Republicans will make the trip to Richmond so the delegates tend to come from the hard-right wing of the party, which is not necessary representative of all Republicans let alone the general population.
Finally, as for a closed primary being limiting, this is generally seen as a good thing because after all the nominees should reflect who Republicans want, not Democrats and Independents.
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