by Victoria Miele ’28 on February 26, 2026
News
The United States holds primary elections every four years to determine which candidates from each political party will run in the general election. There are many types of primary elections, but the most common are open and closed. This being said, there are also semi-closed, blanket, top-two, and top-four.
In open primaries, citizens can vote for any candidate of any political party. This means a registered Democrat would be able to vote in a Republican primary. A voter is permitted to vote in only one party’s primary elections, but in many states, voters are not required to choose a particular political party when they register to vote.
In a closed primary election, voters are only able to vote for the candidate in the party with which they are registered. This means registered Republicans can only vote in the Republican primary election. In semi-closed primary elections, voters who are registered as independent or do not have a party affiliation are able to choose whichever party they want to vote for. However, those who are registered with a particular party are only able to vote for the candidate representing that party.
In 40 states the Democratic or Republican parties used an open, closed, or semi-closed primary in 2026. In seven states, the parties used a different type of primary, such as blanket, top-two, etc. In Alaska, California, and Washington, there were no partisan primaries for congressional and state-level offices.
As of February 2026, the Democratic Party used open primaries in 18 states, closed in 17, and semi-closed in 12. The Republican Party used open primaries in 15 states, closed in 23, and semi-closed in nine. For candidates to appear on the ballot, they must file paperwork with the proper entities by a particular time. The state with the earliest set time to file for the 2026 candidacy is Illinois in October 2025, and the latest time to file is in Delaware with a deadline of July 14, 2026. The 2026 general election will be held on Nov. 3. There will be legislative, congressional, gubernatorial, and statewide offices on the ballots.