Should Democrats register as Republicans so they can vote in the primary?

Why not? Go for it!
In Washington State voters are allowed to vote for any party in the primary so we don’t have to change parties in an attempt to screw with the election process.

I’m a Republican and in 2008 I voted for Obama. Why? Because the thought of Hilary Clinton as President was too much for me to take. HA!

My father was registered as a Republican for a few decades because he wanted to be able to vote in primaries and there were never any competitive Democratic primaries where he lived (because there was always either a Democratic incumbent or no real challenger to the front runner). That reason made a certain amount of sense to me, so I can see people doing it in years where one party’s nominee has already been chosen.

But while switching parties to vote for who you think is the best in that field is one thing, switching to enact sabotage is almost always a bad idea. Leaving aside the fact that it’s just more bad faith politics (which we need less of in this country), Democrats aren’t great at figuring out what appeals to Republicans and why (and vice versa).

Remember that in 2012, a lot of Republicans were positive that Romney would beat Obama (despite all reliable indicators showing that Obama would sail to reelection). And in 2016, a lot of Democrats were praying for a Trump candidacy since they were so sure it would guarantee a Clinton victory (despite all reliable indicators showing that Republicans had significant advantages in the election).

This is sort of like paying someone to break your neighbor’s window. You lose something, but the point is that making your neighbor lose something is worth your own loss. If this became widespread, there’s no telling what kind of gross gamesmanship and unholy alliances would come out of it. Politics is messy enough.

@SavoirFaire I completely agree about the sabotage. I think voting for the extremist lunatics or for a seemingly unpopular candidate hoping they can’t win is a dangerous game. I have always believed that in the primary people should vote for who they feel is the best candidate.

@Smashley I don’t understand your analogy. It would be trying to get in the two favorite candidates to the finals.

@JLeslie – in a closed primary, you lose your own party vote in order to disorder someone else’s. You value your own vote less than you value messing with the voting of others.

Move to Georgia. On primary day, you go into the polling place and ask for either the R or the D ballot right then. No need to preregister or any of that.

I voted in the R primary in 2000 (I forget who for, but not Trump) and then voted democratic in the general election.

I would say no.
You should the other side decide for themselves which candidate they want to field.
While the goal to filter out the extremists is understandble, consider the oppoisite side of the coin, where republicans vote in democratic primaries. You would never see a left of centre candidate like Bernie Sanders ever again.

I live in 1 of the 33 states that has open primaries. I’m a registered Independent & I’m allowed to vote in either of the primaries, but NOT both of them. The voters I’ve heard abusing the system are normally Reps who are voting for the Dem that they feel is least likely to beat their preferred candidate & feel confident that their preferred candidate didn’t “need” their vote to win the primary. I see NO need to change registration!!!

I actually used to be annoyed with closed primaries, but now I think they are better, because it does make it more difficult for someone to cross parties and try to screw around with the election.

@elbanditoroso I think that is how it was when I lived in Tennessee. I didn’t pay attention since I always just stuck with the Democrats anyway.

@ragingloli If I never had a Sanders win the primary, but also never had a Trump, I would be ok with it. I’m more moderate anyway, so I guess it is easy for me to say that. The catastrophe of a right extremist leader is so detrimental, it is worth waiting longer for the country to shift more left.

Why not? Trump did, so can you.

@Smashley I think my friend who is considering it is trying to have two top choices, not to mess with the other party.

It’s weird. Why not remain a Democrat and vote in the Democratic primary?
But maybe she thinks she can sabotage the Republicans…

^^I said multiple times she is not trying to sabotage anything. She loved Republican governor Hogan when she lived in Maryland. I’m pretty sure she voted for him. If a Republican wins she wants it to be someone she isn’t terrified of.

Should? People should vote anyway they wish….that is the only ‘should.’

I was probably reacting more to the headline of your question than the details. I would say that if your friend chooses this path, they should probably learn to identify as a Republican. She is in general more concerned with the goings on of the Republican Party in her state, and will come to be more invested in that outcome. That a person will “almost for sure” vote for Biden (who isn’t even the official candidate yet) does not make them automatically a Democrat. Participation in the process of choosing has much more do with your political identity than whom you would pick in a two person race for all the marbles.

@Smashley She’s not more concerned about the Republican party in the state, it’s only about the primary for president of the country in this particular election, because it looks like no one will challenge Biden.

She’s a Democrat. She’s been on facebook almost daily trying to wake people up about Trump, DeSantis, and the Republican party. She couldn’t be more outspoken against the Republicans and what they have been doing.

No. Because all in the end it’s a number game. If you don’t vote for the members in your party, you ad one to the opponent’s side and take one away from your side.
Think of it this way. Say you are Dem and vote for a Republican. On that ticket, there are 2 dems and two Republicans. Now say you like one dem over another but a thousand people did the same. Voted for the Republican less likely to win, and now you can’t vote for your favorite Democrat. Now comes election time and you find out the Republican you thought couldn’t possibly win ends up at the Dem selected which wasn’t your favorite and maybe just as bad. My point, is people should vote for who they believe is best for their State or country period. People playing games shouldn’t even bother to vote.

If anything, it wouldn’t surprise me if this is how Americans end up with people in office who never should’ve ran for office.

@Pandora Are you saying people voting for the worst candidate on the opposite side to try to sabotage the election?

@Pandora But what of the context in which the question is asked: a year in which only one party is having a competitive primary?