open primary

See synonyms for open primary on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a direct primary election in which voters need not meet a test of party membership.

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Origin of open primary

1
An Americanism dating back to 1930–35

Words Nearby open primary

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How to use open primary in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for open primary

open primary

noun
  1. US government a primary in which any registered voter may participate: Compare closed primary

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for open primary

open primary

A type of direct primary open to voters regardless of their party affiliation. Voters need not publicly declare their party affiliation but must vote for candidates of only one party. The opposite is a closed primary, in which only registered members of a party may vote.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.