According to PoliticsPa, 71,904 registered Lehigh Valley voters will be unable to vote in the April 23 party primaries. That's because they are independents in a closed primary state. As a result, the most conservative Republicans and most liberal Democrats tend to get the party nominations. This just feeds a divisive system in which gridlock is becoming the norm. Below is a comparison of the party registrations as of March 26, 2024, compared to what they were during the 2016 Presidential election.
Northampton County
Total: 220,976, compared to 211,402 in 2016.
Democrats: 95,858, compared to 99,075 in 2016. Democrats account for 43.4% of the total registration, compared to 47% in 2016.
Republicans: 81,654, compared to 73,473 in 2016. Republican registration increased from 34.8% to 37% of the total registration.
Other: 32,886, compared to 38,854 in 2016. Independents increased from 18.4% to 14.9% of the total number of registered voters.
Lehigh County
Total: 243,897, compared to 236.081 in 2016.
Democrats: 111,717, compared to 115,745 in 2016. Democrats account for 45.8% of the total registration, compared to 49% in 2016.
Republicans: 85,209, compared to 80,623 in 2016. Republicans account for 34.9% of the total registration, compared to 34.2% in 2016.
Other: 39,038, compared to 39,713 in 2016. Independents account for 16% of the total registration, compared to 16.8% in 2016.
32 comments:
Interesting statistics. A quick reading tells me Republican registrations are up nicely. I am in the “Other” category and don’t really mind not being able to vote in the Primary. Was a both a Democrat and a Republican for years, but both parties have disappointed me, so went “Other” about 15 years ago. Right now, both parties suck, but of our two evils, Republicans offer better promise for the future.
Tough luck! Pick a party and stand for something.
The MAGA movement has taken over the Republican party, but let's not pretend the Democrats are putting up a bunch of Lefties. Joe Biden, Bob Casey, and Susan Wild are very moderate.
Democrats lost registered voters (a lot) while Republicans gained registered voters (a lot) and you - a lifelong registered Democrat - would like to change the rules to infiltrate a growing Republican party. Shocking! This is a response to ballot dump boxes. Take your L and STFU. I'm an Independent. My choice to avoid parties filled with people like you and Lynch and Biden and Trump. Think you're not one of them? You are.
Is the DA term limit on the ballot in Norco? Any registered voter can participate if so.
Most independents are fully aware by so registering that they relinquish their access to the primaries. On the other hand, occasionally people register for the opposite party of their choice, so that they can subversively attempt to nominate a weaker candidate.
If you want to vote for leadership of an organization, you need to be a member of that organization. Independents could form one or more organizations and elect a leader. The implication in this post is that it is somehow wrong that I don’t get a vote on who the governor of New York is, as a PA resident.
Many Democrats are switching parties to vote on the other side, since the Republicans are greatly discombobulated.
Your headline on this story is wrong. It should read:
“71,904 Lehigh Valley Registered LV Voters CHOOSE NOT TO Vote in April 23 Primary.”
Those voters CHOSE not to be affiliated with one of the major parties, and to not be bothered with primary elections. If they wanted to vote in either primary, it is easier than ever to register as a member of a party in order to vote in that primary. I believe they might even still be able to do so now if they wanted, with just weeks until Election Day.
For anyone who feels disenfranchised by the primary system and wants to blame someone, look no further than the nearest mirror.
Could you please clarify numbers for Northampton County independent voters - increase or decrease?
This is a stupid post, implying that voters will be 'unable to vote' like someone did something to cause that. Yea, those individual voters excluded themselves, by deciding to be 'independent', whatever the hell that means. This is a non-story in a closed primary state, which we've been...for YEARS.
So what can the voters do to change this Bernie? Easier said than done.
Maybe in whatever time he has left as County Chair, Mr. Matthew Munsey could concentrate solely on registering voters.
If one is enlightened enough to eschew the parties and register as an Independent, one is enlightened enough to understand they won't participate in the primary system. They're also enlightened enough to know that the silly primary system is not what's delivering radical candidates. You feign occasional moderation, but have become as radical as the rest in the era of Trump and CoViD. One thing is clear from the registration numbers, Democrats are taking a hit from Republicans and Independents. Perhaps that's why you want your team to be able to infiltrate the other team's primary business. Don't say open primaries are for Independents. That's what party people want everyone to believe. They knew what they signed up for.
Closed primaries DO breed the extreme candidates. There are valid arguments for this type of system and who should have a say in which candidate to put forward. Ultimately it is on party leadership to recruit and promote candidates who can not only win a primary, but more importantly win a general election when "Independents" and more moderate voters are at the polls.
Ranked choice voting is the way to go and will quickly eliminate the radical idiots that both party bases jerk off to and force onto the rest of us.
It's kinda hard to pretend this is a both parties issue when you actually look at the candidates on the ballot.
I would love for someone to point out the "extreme" candidates on the Democratic side. You know, what is the Democratic equivalent of the person selling bibles and golden sneakers with their name on them that wants a federal abortion ban and a 100% tarrif on automobiles?
More than 71,000 voters in the Lehigh Valley won't be able to vote in the Primary election. Well ain't that tough shit. They can change their registration to vote for the Democrat or the Republican or don't vote at all. why should they vote in our primary? They can change their registration anytime they want and vote for the candidate they want. It doesn't matter in the general election. Screw them. If they want to vote in primaries they should put up their own candidates.
All of this loss of Democratic voters has come during the tenure of Munsey as County Chair. It’s time for him to go.
Leave it to the Democrats to be trying to one-up the Republican who literally are in court right now fighting among themselves.
Thank you for the laugh
Ranked choice voting? Give me a break. I’ve seen the nut bags this produces in other states, where your options become either idiot #1 or idiot #2.
Say what you want about the quality of candidates that the current system produces, at least it provides a real choice in the general election.
I think the number of Independents has risen due to many Left leaning voters not wanting to be associated with Matt Muncy.
Chairman Munsey has an honest to goodness opportunity to redeem himself. Turn these registration numbers around in a big way. He should just camp out at the local colleges until Election Day registering voters.
Munsey is the reason Hillary lost Norco. He was still mad she primaries President Obama in 2008. He undermined her in 2016 and Trump won Northampton County.
"You know, what is the Democratic equivalent of the person selling bibles and golden sneakers with their name on them that wants a federal abortion ban and a 100% tarrif on automobiles?"
Taiba Sultana, running for state house.
Mark Pinsley, running for state auditor.
Dude, you just don't like them as people. If Sultana loses does that mean the premise behind your post here was totally wrong?
What Im curious to know is the demographics of the movers. Party switchers, deaths, new voters, dropouts...
Was there a surge of Urban Dem voters that moved here do to covid? If so, where are they?
That information would be interesting to digest.
Bernie, Maybe you should help Sultana and Pinsley since they are in your wheelhouse as you stated multiple times, you are a Democrat.
Absolutely agree with your assessment on Taiba, Bernie. She’s the D equivalent of Marjorie Taylor Greene. If she goes to Harrisburg, watch Pennsylvania become the laughingstock of the nation as she destroys the decorum and we become viewed as a bunch of morons in Easton for voting for her. I’d like to add to your list Taiba’s ally DA Baratta who campaigned in the same hateful way that Taiba is doing and seems modeled after Trump. Can’t say much about Pinsley except that he runs for everything like Taiba.
Sultana will lose so no need to lose sleep.
Republicans were out throughout the pandemic. Munsey and Easton’s Tara Stephenson were practically ordering people to stay home. Republicans really got a jump on things while Democrats were cowering under the covers.
Sounds like a disgruntled NORCO dem
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