Advocates continue push for open primaries in Nevada after Question 3 defeated
RENO, Nev. (News 4 & Fox 11) — Advocates are vowing to continue the years long push for open primaries in Nevada after Question 3, the open primaries and ranked choice voting ballot measure, was defeated in the 2024 election.
Despite passing the measure by a 6-point margin in 2022, Silver State voters rejected Question 3 by a 6-point margin in 2024. It would've added the two election reforms into the Nevada Constitution starting with the 2026 election.
But proponents are promising to keep fighting to pass open primaries, the more popular aspect of the measure, and calling on legislative leaders to introduce an open primary bill in the 2025 legislative session.
"The bill's already there. It just needs to be resubmitted into the 2025 session, given hearings, passed and signed by the governor," said Sondra Cosgrove, open primaries advocate and College of Southern Nevada history professor, referring to Senate Bill 121 from the 2021 legislature.
If legislative leadership does not want to do that, then I want them to explain why. I want them to explain why they are opposed to open primaries.
Cosgrove said some legislative leaders have expressed support for open primaries, with vocal Question 3 opponent and Nevada Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager even appearing to support the concept in an exchange on X last month.
It comes after many Nevada voters who were skeptical of ranked choice voting were open to or outwardly supportive of open primaries. Even the representatives arguing against Question 3 in our televised debate were not opposed to open primaries alone.
Just like Question 3, Senate Bill 121 would convert every partisan race in Nevada to an open primary. All candidates regardless of party affiliation would be on one long primary ballot, in which voters would select one.
Unlike Question 3, when the top five vote-getters would advance to a ranked choice general election, the top two vote-getters in this open primary would advance to a standard general election featuring the two candidates.
Cosgrove and others have supported open primaries as a way to give more voice to the 34% of the electorate currently registered as nonpartisans and therefore unable to participate in closed primaries.
"A lot of those these nonpartisan voters are my students. And many of them didn't even vote this last time, which breaks my heart. We need folks to be engaged at the primary end of it. So there's a lot of time to talk about issues and to work through things. If you wait till September and then start going 'be afraid' or 'be angry,' then people just get all frustrated and they don't vote," she said.
The Yes on 3 campaign declined to comment for this story and a spokesperson for Assembly Democrats said Yeager was not available for an interview in time for our deadline.
The 2025 Nevada legislature will begin on Monday, Feb. 3.
Email reporter Ben Margiott at bjmargiott@sbgtv.com. Follow @BenMargiott on X and Ben Margiott KRNV on Facebook.