STATE HOUSE — The General Assembly today passed legislation introduced by Rep. Patricia A. Serpa and Sen. Leonidas P. Raptakis allowing independent voters an auto primary disaffiliation option.
Under current law, when a voter who is not affiliated with any political party chooses to vote in a party primary, that voter is automatically registered as being affiliated with that party. Those voters can choose to disaffiliate immediately by filling out a form.
The proposed legislation (2024-H 7662, 2024-S 2894) would make that disaffiliation automatic for all independent voters.
The legislation also solves the growing problem of those who vote in primary elections through the use of mail ballots. While those who vote in person can sign a disaffiliation form at the polls, those who mail in their ballots receive no such form and are sometimes surprised to find later that they now have a party affiliation.
“Almost half of Rhode Islanders consider themselves independent,” said Senator Raptakis (D-Dist. 33, Coventry, West Greenwich). “Now that more voting is done through mail-in and provisional ballots, this will stop disenfranchising voters who just forgot to fill out paperwork after the last election.”
The measure now moves to the governor’s office.
Author: Rob Borkowski
Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at [email protected] with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.
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