“Plans are already on the way for the MSU College Republicans and the (MSU) Student Association to flood our primaries,” [Daniel] Melder said in a March 1 article of The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.
Edward Sanders, as well as other College Republicans, feel that restricting the Democratic Primary to Democrats is somehow disenfranchising voters. Sanders states, “Nowhere in the state Constitution does it give you a right to exclude any voter from exercising their rights.”
This is to all students who feel they have a right to vote in the Democratic Primary: you don’t. The Democratic Primary is just that-for the Democratic Party. When Democrats go to the polls prior to the general election (pay attention, that’s where everyone else comes in), we are casting our ballots for who we believe best represents our party.
If you are a Republican, vote in the Republican Primary. If you are an independent, wait until the parties have finished their preliminary business and vote in the general election. The College Democrats have never advocated taking away one’s right to vote for any elected official. However, we challenge the audacity of Republicans’ beliefs that they should be allowed to vote in the best interests of the Democratic Party in our primary.
Numbers are not the issue here. It is irrelevant that this is a local issue instead of a national issue. The fact remains that the primaries are party-specific, party-driven and that is that. For example, Democrats here in Starkville create the ballots that will be seen during the Democratic Primary. This is not a county, city or state issue-it is a party issue.
I leave everyone with the following advice: when you come to realize the greatness of the Democratic Party and become loyal to its ideals, then-and only then-you are welcome to vote in our primary. Until then, vote in another primary or wait and vote in the general election. I only invite Democrats to participate in Democratic affairs.
Last, but not least, any notion that the College Democrats support any particular candidate in the mayoral race is simply not true. The College Democrats as an organization can support no one until after our primary. Regardless of which candidate individuals choose to support personally, our organization endorses no one until May 4.
Brandon Bogard is a junior accounting major.