California’s Leading Democrat Proposes Revisions to Top-Two Primary System for Governor’s Race

The leader of the California Democratic Party has grown increasingly frustrated with the potential scenario where Democrats might be sidelined in the gubernatorial race due to the existing voting system. He is now advocating for a transformation in the way primaries are conducted to prevent such outcomes in the future.

Rusty Hicks stands out as one of the early influential Democrats this year to support a comprehensive overhaul of California’s primary elections. Under the current setup, the top two vote-getters, irrespective of their party affiliation, progress to the general election.

“Our current system is flawed,” Hicks stated in an interview with the Guardian. “It demands a revision or outright repeal.”

Although these changes won’t be implemented in the upcoming primary, Hicks expressed his ambition to see a new proposal put forth to voters by the end of the year. He suggested this could originate from the state legislature or a well-funded individual capable of introducing a ballot measure.

Hicks did not elaborate on the specifics of any alternative system he might endorse.

California’s existing “jungle primary” format was introduced in 2010 as a reform initiative by the then-Republican Governor, gaining approval from voters.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said it would give moderates and pragmatists in both parties better chances of winning.

Prior to 2012, the state held primaries like most other states currently do: registered voters of the two major parties separately chose their party’s candidate to face off in the general election.

Under that system, the more extreme elements of each party would have more sway, some argued.

The open-for-all primary has had some unintended consequences of quirky gamesmanship. For example, Gavin Newsom’s 2018 campaign for governor promoted Republican candidate John Cox to avoid a Democrat-on-Democrat general election.

This year, though, Democrats seem to have felt powerless. A crowded field of Democratic candidates have given rise to a chance that Democratic voters may split their votes too wide apart that the two Republican candidates – Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco – would advance to the general election.

Those fears — while mostly dismissed by many Democrats now as some Democrats have surged in the polls — still have led Hicks in the past to call on lower-polling Democrats to drop out.

The system needs “a review, a reconsideration and maybe even a repeal,” Hicks said.

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