Illinois' open primary

After reading two letters from readers who do not approve of the way Illinois conducts primary elections, some clarification is needed:

Illinois is an open primary state, which means we can vote in whichever party's primary we choose. But you still have to choose one party's ballot. You can vote all over the spectrum in the general election, but not in the primary. Illinois voters do not register with a party affiliation.

A closed primary state will not allow you to choose the party ballot. Whichever party you chose when registering to vote is the ballot you will receive. This means that unless there is at least one Independent candidate on the ballot, registered Independents cannot vote in that primary.

But open or closed, primary voting means single-party ballots.

Lynn Zoia Sakata

Arlington Heights