Citing Michael Harrington's post, the Washington Post observes that so far, Donald Trump has fared well in open-primary states (such as South Carolina) while Ted Cruz has won three of the four closed-primary states (Iowa, Oklahoma, and Alaska, with Nevada going to Trump).
US primary elections, in which each party chooses its respective candidate for the Presidential election in November, are held throughout the 50 states on varying dates. Rules regarding the primary process vary from state to state.
In a state with "open primaries", any eligible voter may vote in either party's primary, regardless of the voter's own affiliation. In such states, it's possible for voters to vote in the opposing party's primary, and damage that party's chances by choosing a weak candidate.
And that's what may have happened here: Democrats in South Carolina may have voted for Trump in the Republican primary, because they are confident that he will lose the election to their own candidate, presumably Hillary Clinton.
Harrington concludes that Trump's victories in open-primary states were largely attributable to Democrats voting for Trump in Republican primaries.
The good news for Cruz, according to the Post's Zywicki, is that most of the upcoming primaries - and all of those being held this Saturday, March 15 (Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Maine) - are closed. So this may be Cruz's chance to pull ahead - without interference from Democrat voters.
US primary elections, in which each party chooses its respective candidate for the Presidential election in November, are held throughout the 50 states on varying dates. Rules regarding the primary process vary from state to state.
In a state with "open primaries", any eligible voter may vote in either party's primary, regardless of the voter's own affiliation. In such states, it's possible for voters to vote in the opposing party's primary, and damage that party's chances by choosing a weak candidate.
And that's what may have happened here: Democrats in South Carolina may have voted for Trump in the Republican primary, because they are confident that he will lose the election to their own candidate, presumably Hillary Clinton.
Harrington concludes that Trump's victories in open-primary states were largely attributable to Democrats voting for Trump in Republican primaries.
The good news for Cruz, according to the Post's Zywicki, is that most of the upcoming primaries - and all of those being held this Saturday, March 15 (Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Maine) - are closed. So this may be Cruz's chance to pull ahead - without interference from Democrat voters.
