Want to know why I'm registered to vote as an independent? That is, besides Federalist #10.
It's a sad, but unsurprising statement about the competitiveness of the Republican Party in my Commonwealth that they're resorting to an unenforceable loyalty oath as a condition for voting in the GOP primary. The days of the Old Dominion voting solidly Republican (every Presidential election since 1968) are over, and elephants are feeling the heat, I suppose.
My favorite justification for the new policy:
Charles E. Judd, executive director of the Republican Party of Virginia, said party officials want to make it harder for non-Republicans to participate in the GOP primary.I wonder what Mr. Judd would say about Republicans that choose to participate in the Virginia Democratic Party's open primary system. Nevermind the obvious fact that this little statement does nothing to actually stop non-Republicans from spoiling in primary season.
"We feel we need the right to say to someone figuratively, 'If you intend to support the Democrat candidate in the fall general election, you probably shouldn't help us pick our candidate,'" Judd said.
Radley Balko:
Given the Virginia GOP's legislative record over the last several years it also isn't exactly clear to what principles voters would be pledging their loyalty, other than contempt for gay people. They should probably be more concerned about requiring its elected officials to pledge an oath to some basic principles of limited government.
(On a related note, the Libertarian Party, of which I have never and will never be a member, still pushes their own ideological purity oath as a condition of membership. They require that all members promise "not [to] advocate the initiation of force to achieve political or social goals.")
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