A federal judge has struck down a key part of a 2016 ballot initiative that sets a high threshold for Colorado political parties to close their primary elections to unaffiliated voters, delivering a significant win to conservatives within the state Republican Party.
The ruling did not fully strike down Proposition 108, which opened up primaries to participation by party faithful and unaffiliated voters alike. But in the decision issued on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Philip A. Brimmer wrote that the law puts a “severe burden” on parties that want to opt out of the open primaries.
He ruled that part of the law violates the First Amendment’s protections of the freedom of association.
The law says that if a political party wants to close its primary so that only its own registered voters can participate, three-quarters of that party’s central committee must vote in support of the change. That threshold is unconstitutionally high, Brimmer wrote.
Read the rest from our partners at The Denver Post.
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