DOVER –The House passed two measures on Tuesday to streamline the electoral process and increase voter turnout.
House Bill 30, sponsored by Rep. Stephanie T. Bolden, would move Delaware’s state primary elections to coincide with its presidential primary elections in April.
Currently, Delaware holds its presidential primaries for both major parties on the fourth Tuesday in April. However, the First State’s primaries for statewide and local political offices are held on the second Tuesday after the first Monday in September. The separate dates can create confusion among voters, while turnout for the state primary dramatically drops off from the presidential primary. The change would take effect with the presidential election in 2024, but it also would move “off-year” elections (2026, 2030, etc.) to the same Tuesday.
“When we exercise our right to vote, we should feel empowered and not confused. This bill makes things much clearer when it’s time to cast a ballot on Election Day,” said Rep. Bolden, D-Wilmington East. “This is an important change needed in our elections and will strengthen our democracy, encouraging more people to vote. Consolidating primaries will save the state money, reduce voter confusion and increase turnout. It’s simply the right thing to do.”
In 2020, 21 states held their state and presidential primaries on the same day, including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland and California. Ten of these states held or were scheduled to hold their primaries on or before the current date for Delaware’s presidential primary, which is the fourth Tuesday in April.
In 2020, Delaware had the latest state primary in the country, just seven weeks before Election Day. Delaware primaries are so late that the state constantly must obtain waivers for federal requirements for overseas and military ballots. This means Delawareans living overseas have very little time to receive, consider and return their ballots.
“Our elections should be as simple, clear and transparent as possible,” said Sen. Nicole Poore, D-New Castle, HB 30’s lead Senate sponsor. “By consolidating Delaware’s presidential primary with its state primary, we will not only put an end to needless confusion among our constituents, but also save taxpayers additional expense and – most importantly – increase voter turnout. This legislation is good common sense, good fiscal sense and good public policy.”
The House also passed Senate Bill 5, which would create an automatic voter registration system at the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles to streamline the process of adding legal adult citizens to the voter rolls in the First State.
“Establishing automatic voter registration in Delaware, allows for more voices to be heard, reduces errors and boosts security for everyone in our state,” said Rep. David Bentz, the lead House sponsor. “Voting is a fundamental right and I commend all of my colleagues for prioritizing election reform in the state of Delaware.”
Currently, Delawareans are asked if they would like to register or re-register as voters whenever they engage in a transaction at their local DMV. They then must provide detailed information to complete the voter registration process.
“Democracy works best when we make it as easy as possible for people to participate in the electoral process,” said Sen. Kyle Gay, D-Talleyville. “The first step in exercising your right to vote is getting registered as a voter. Many Delawareans do that at their local DMV and there are steps we can take to make that process even simpler. It’s time we used all the tools at our disposal to make registering to vote as quick, easy and painless as possible.”
SB 5 would permit all driver’s license applications to also serve as voter registration applications and allow Delaware DMV to share the information collected on those forms with the Delaware Department of Elections for that purpose, whenever an applicant shows proof of U.S. citizenship. Anyone who does not provide proof of U.S. citizenship will not be registered to vote and will not have their information forwarded to the Department of Elections.
HB 30 now goes to the Senate for consideration. SB 5 goes to Gov. John Carney for his signature.
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