Obama did in the demorcrat party
During the primary elections, one must vote for someone in their affiliated party. Once the general election is underway, the individual can vote for someone of the opposite party.
No. In the primaries, the voter can only vote for those candidates associated to their party affiliation. In the general election however, anyone can vote for any candidate. Those registered as IND (Independent) cannot vote at all during the primaries, but can vote in the general elections come November.
It's called party raiding
Yes you can. It does matter what party you are in if you think that other person for the other party will better suit the needs and polices you want. There is no law against it. Plus a number of people will say they will vote for one person but later vote for another when they get to the polling place.
The dominant party changes from one election to the next, and varies by location.
no, you do not have to register to vote. In most states you have to register where you live and do it some fixed time before the election. As long as you do not move out of your voting precinct your registration will stay in effect from one year to another even if you do not vote in every election.
No. If it isn't on the ballot you can't vote for it. One reason I am registered with a party because California doesn't allow a third party vote on a ballot.
The State of Tennessee does not require you to declare party affiliation when registering to vote. Tennessee does have primaries where party nominees who qualify to run for a particular office are elected by majority vote and proceed to the General election held in either August or November. You do not have to be a member of a party to vote in primaries or in General elections. You may register with a certain party but are not required to declare a party when registering to vote. With the exception of Presidential election years when the Presidential Preference Primary is held in February in Tennessee, primaries are held in May and August of even numbered years.
They call this a closed primary. However, all you have to do is state that youfavor some one party's candidate(s) in order to vote for their slate. You do not have to actually have any proven ties to a party and you can vote however you like in the real election.
Any one over the age of 18 can vote in a general election.
It's called a primary election because it is the first of more than one election in a particular state for the same term of the same office.
Yes, for closed primaries you are only allowed to vote for candidates who are in the same party as the voter. In an open primary, like a general election, any registered voter is allowed to vote for the candidates on the ballot. The difference between open primaries and general elections is that open primaries include only candidates from one party that all registered voters can choose from, while in the general elections, candidates can come from several parties, with all registered voters eligible to choose the one of their choice, regardless of their primary choices.