New Poll Finds Florida NPAs and Democrats Strongly in Favor of the Democratic Party Opening its Primary

Political parties have the legal right to open their primaries to NPAs, and Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried has been publicly debating the idea for months. That’s because there are 3.4 million NPA voters shut out of primary elections due to Florida's closed primaries. Now, a new poll of Florida NPA and Democratic voters finds not only overwhelming support for such a move but also broad support for primary reform generally.

The poll, conducted by Florida Open Primaries in conjunction with national election reform group Open Primaries and its Let Us Vote campaign, asked 1,310 Florida voters (684 NPA voters and 626 Democrats) their views on several key aspects of Florida’s closed primary and the Democratic Party’s debate on opening their primary.

Key Findings:

• 96% of NPAs and 93% of Democrats support a move to open all Florida primary elections to NPA voters.

• 80% of NPAs and 87% of Democrats support the Democratic Party unilaterally opening its primary.
• 87% of NPAs and 83% of Democrats support the Democratic Party adopting a broader set of activities in support of primary reform, including legislation and acknowledgement of past efforts at opposing primary reform and shutting out NPA voters.

“I am a Florida Democrat and have been active locally for 15 years. Closed primaries are unfair to independent voters who comprise about one-third of Florida voters," said Lenny Guckenheimer. "They pay for primary elections but can't vote. The Democratic Party should open its primaries so that all voters can have a voice in choosing their elected leaders. Democrats and independents are aligned-an open primary will make the Democratic Party stronger.” 

"These poll results confirm that NPAs voting in the Florida Democratic primary would be a win-win for both NPAs and the Democratic Party," said John Marvin, an  NPA voter. "The 3.4 million Florida NPAs would be able to vote in some of the most consequential elections—elections paid for by their hard-earned tax dollars. The Democratic Party would have 3.4 million additional voters preferentially informed and engaged with Democratic candidates."

Full Poll Results can be found HERE