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Primary elections in New Hampshire
 in New Hampshire |
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Primary elections allow voters to determine which candidates compete in the general election and can be nonpartisan or partisan. In partisan primaries, voters choose the candidates they prefer for a political party to nominate in the general election.
The laws governing primary elections vary from state to state and can even vary within states by locality and political party. For example, only registered party members are allowed to vote in closed primaries, while registered party members and unaffiliated voters are allowed to vote in semi-closed primaries, and all voters are allowed to vote in open primaries.
Primary elections also vary by the way their outcomes are determined. Majority systems require the winning candidate to receive at least fifty percent of the votes cast, while plurality systems do not. In top-two primaries, top-four primaries, and blanket primaries, all candidates are listed on the same ballot, regardless of partisan affiliation.
See the sections below for general information on the use of primary elections in the United States and specific information on the types of primaries held in New Hampshire:
- BackgroundThe different types of primary election participation models used in the United States, and details about methods to determine the outcomes of primaries.
- Primary election systems used in New HampshirePrimary election systems used in New Hampshire, including primaries for congressional and state-level offices.
- State legislation and ballot measuresState legislation and ballot measures relevant to primary election policy in New Hampshire.
Background
In general, there are two broad criteria by which primary elections can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction:
1. Rules of participation: In jurisdictions that conduct partisan primaries, who can vote in a party's primary? Is participation limited to registered party members, or can other eligible voters (such as unaffiliated voters or voters belonging to other parties) participate? In general, there are three basic types of primary election participation models: open primaries, closed primaries, and semi-closed primaries. Several states also use a top-two primary or a variant of that system.
- In closed primaries only registered party members are allowed to vote.
- In semi-closed primaries, registered party members and unaffiliated voters are allowed to vote.
- In open primaries, all voters are allowed to vote.
- In top-two primaries, top-four primaries, and blanket primaries, all candidates are listed on the same ballot, regardless of partisan affiliation and voters may vote for candidates from more than one party.
2. Vote requirements: What share of the total votes cast does a candidate have to receive in order to advance to the general election? Methods for determining primary election outcomes include plurality voting systems ans majority voting systems. Two states, California and Washington, use top-two primaries, while one, Alaska, uses a top-four primary. Both are plurality systems. Maine use ranked-choice voting for some primaries, which is a majority system.
Primary election systems used in New Hampshire
Congressional and state-level elections
In 23 states, at least one political party utilizes closed primaries to nominate partisan candidates for congressional and state-level (e.g. state legislators, governors, etc.) offices. In 19 states, at least one party utilizes open primaries to nominate partisan candidates for these offices. In 12 states, at least one party utilizes semi-closed primaries. In 5 states, top-two primaries or a variation are used.[1] These state primaries are a separate entity and are not included in the totals for open, closed, or semi-closed primaries.
New Hampshire state law provides for semi-closed primaries, meaning that a voter generally must be registered as a party member in order to participate in that party's primary. A previously unaffiliated voter can participate in the primary of their choice. A voter who who previously affiliated with a political party can only vote in that party's primary.
New Hampshire law says: "A person desiring to vote at a state or presidential primary election shall... announce the name of the party to which the person belongs or whether the person is registered as an undeclared voter."[2] State law also says: "A voter may also register as a member of a party at any primary by requesting to be registered as a member and voting the ballot of the party of the voter's choice. A voter may also register once again as an undeclared voter after voting in a primary as a registered member of a party by returning the card or signing the list of undeclared voters from the statewide centralized voter registration database."[3]
A previously affiliated voter who wants to change their affiliation must do so before the first Wednesday of June before a primary.[3]
Winners in New Hampshire primary elections are determined by plurality vote.[4]
The table below lists New Hampshire offices for which parties must conduct primary elections to nominate their candidates.
| Office | Number of seats |
|---|---|
| Governor of New Hampshire | 1 |
| United States Senators | 2 |
| United States Representatives | 2 |
| State legislators | 424 |
State legislation and ballot measures
The table below lists bills related to primary elections that have been introduced during (or carried over to) the current legislative session in New Hampshire. The following information is included for each bill:
- State
- Bill number
- Official bill name or caption
- Most recent action date
- Legislative status
- Sponsor party
- Topics dealt with by the bill
Bills are organized by most recent action. The table displays up to 100 results. To view more bills, use the arrows in the upper-right corner. Clicking on a bill will open its page on Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which includes bill details and a summary.
Primary systems ballot measures
Since 2017, Ballotpedia has tracked no ballot measures relating to primary elections in New Hampshire.
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See also
- Election policy in New Hampshire
- Electoral systems in New Hampshire
- Voting in New Hampshire
- Primary election
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Top-two primary systems, such as those utilized in California, Nebraska, and Washington, and variations of those systems, such as the top-four system used in Alaska and the majority-vote system used in Louisiana, are sometimes classified as open primary systems because voter participation in such primaries is not tied to partisan affiliation. For the purposes of this article, these primaries are considered to be a separate entity. For more information about top-two primaries and their variations, see this article.
- ↑ New Hampshire General Court, "N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 659:14," accessed September 4, 2025
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 New Hampshire General Court, "N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 654:34," accessed September 4, 2025
- ↑ New Hampshire General Court, "N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 659:86," accessed September 15, 2025
