California Democratic Party v. Jones, 530 U.S. 567, 29 (2000)

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Cite as: 530 U. S. 567 (2000)

Stevens, J., dissenting

Amendment affords to the "internal processes" of a political party, ibid., do not encompass a right to exclude nonmembers from voting in a state-required, state-financed primary election.

The so-called "right not to associate" that the Court relies upon, then, is simply inapplicable to participation in a state election. A political party, like any other association, may refuse to allow nonmembers to participate in the party's decisions when it is conducting its own affairs; 6 California's blanket primary system does not infringe this principle. Ante, at 570-571, n. 2. But an election, unlike a convention or caucus, is a public affair. Although it is true that we have extended First Amendment protection to a party's right to invite independents to participate in its primaries, Tashjian v. Republican Party of Conn., 479 U. S. 208 (1986), neither that case nor any other has held or suggested that the "right not to associate" imposes a limit on the State's power to open up its primary elections to all voters eligible to vote in a general election. In my view, while state rules abridging participation in its elections should be closely scrutinized,7 the First Amendment does not inhibit the State from acting to broaden voter access to state-run, state-financed elections. When a State acts not to limit democratic participation but to expand the ability of individuals to participate in the demof the election process by which the people select their government—are state affairs, not internal party affairs.

6 "The State asserts a compelling interest in preserving the overall integrity of the electoral process, providing secrecy of the ballot, increasing voter participation in primaries, and preventing harassment of voters. But all those interests go to the conduct of the Presidential preference primary—not to the imposition of voting requirements upon those who, in a separate process, are eventually selected as delegates." La Follette, 450 U. S., at 124-125.

7 See Timmons v. Twin Cities Area New Party, 520 U. S. 351, 370 (1997) (Stevens, J., dissenting) (general election ballot access restriction); Bullock v. Carter, 405 U. S. 134 (1972) (primary election ballot access restriction).

595

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