Backers of open primary initiative will be seeking signatures Saturday in Lewiston

Supporters of an effort to get an open primary initiative on next year’s ballot in Idaho will be seeking signatures Saturday in Lewiston.

The group will collect signatures in a drive-through setting from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday at the Lewiston Community Center. Volunteers will also be going door-to-door in the Normal Hill area seeking signatures during the same time.

The proposed initiative would open primary elections in Idaho to all voters, regardless of party affiliation, and would implement ranked-choice voting.

According to a news release distributed Wednesday by a group called Idahoans for Open Primaries, the initiative has garnered 50,000 signatures. In order to get the initiative on the November 2024 ballot, the campaign must collect signatures from 6% of all Idaho voters who were registered at the last general election, which is 62,895 signatures, according to the news release. Also, the initiative must have signatures from 6% of the registered voters in 18 of Idaho’s 35 legislative districts. The deadline to complete the collection is May 1, 2024.

“Our coalition has set a goal of collecting 100,000 signatures before submitting to the Secretary of State’s office to be certified,” said Margaret Kinzel, co-leader of the Idaho chapter of Mormon Women for Ethical Government, one of the organizations supporting the initiative. “The fact that volunteers have already reached 50,000 signatures in just four months is a testament to how passionate Idahoans are about the prospect of an open primary.”