Davis Signs Bill Skirting 2000 Blanket Primary

Legislation giving political parties a way around California’s blanket presidential primary received the governor’s signature Tuesday.

The bill, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem John Burton (D-San Francisco), requires that ballots in next year’s March 7 primary include codes to produce two vote totals for each presidential candidate.

One would count the number of votes each candidate received from all voters, regardless of party. The second would tally votes the candidate got from members of his or her party.

The parties could use the second total to award candidates national convention delegates, who select presidential nominees.

Gov. Gray Davis said the change would “ensure that California voters have a voice in the upcoming presidential primary.”

The Democratic and Republican parties had threatened to ignore the results of California’s blanket primary, which allows voters to cross party lines to pick nominees for state and federal offices. They had threatened to use some other system, such as caucuses like those used in Iowa, or state conventions, to pick national convention delegates.

The parties do not want members of another party playing a role in picking their presidential candidates. The U.S. Supreme Court says that the parties can dictate how states select national convention delegates.

The Democratic National Committee supported Burton’s bill, but it is unclear if the change will satisfy Republican delegate selection rules.

A spokesman for proponents of blanket primaries, Marc Kirshbaum, has criticized the bill, saying that it violates the will of voters.