Contemporary Primary Reform Efforts

Abstract

Abstract This chapter assesses the reasons for proposals to change state primary election laws over the past twenty years. It supplements the National Conference of State Legislatures database of introduced legislation with measures of partisan composition of the legislature and changes in that composition. It evaluates several different explanations for proposals to change state primary laws, concluding that while both partisan advantage and political ideology lead to proposed changes, ultimately ideology appears to matter more than partisan gain. Despite relatively meager findings of research on the consequences of actual changes, the analysis shows that beliefs about the consequences of changes continue to prompt proposals for change.