Kentucky's closed primaries exclude fastest-growing voter group. Should that change?
On May 19, about 1 in 10 registered Kentucky voters will not be eligible to cast a ballot in the state’s partisan primaries because they are not Republicans or Democrats.
Kentucky is one of eight states in the nation that have closed primaries, or primaries that allow only registered members of the Republican and Democratic parties to cast ballots in those parties’ primaries. Still, Kentuckians in increasing numbers have been registering as independent or third party in recent years.
Some elected officials, including Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams, have voiced support for opening the state’s primaries. However, Kentucky’s top GOP legislative leaders — Senate President Robert Stivers and House Speaker David Osborne — said last week that they would oppose opening primaries.
“There’s too many shenanigans and too many other things that can happen,” Stivers told reporters. He argued that all Kentucky voters have the ability to choose a party when they register and was wary of members of an opposing party trying to influence the outcome of the other’s
https://kentuckylantern.com/2026/02/17/kentucky-is-one-of-only-8-states-with-closed-primary-elections-should-that-change/