The next Florida vs. Georgia matchup on the football field may still be more than six months away, but that doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t see how the states stack up when it comes to how they conduct their primaries in an election year.<\/p>\n
Both states have some potentially blockbuster races this year, with Republican governors Ron DeSantis of Florida and Brian Kemp of Georgia facing term limits. The Republican and Democratic primaries for governor in both states feature several candidates, and in Florida\u2019s case, the field won\u2019t be fully set until qualifying week in June.<\/p>\n
Florida and Georgia also each have a U.S. Senate seat on the line this year. In Florida\u2019s case, it\u2019s a special election to fill the rest of Secretary of State Marco Rubio\u2019s former Senate term. Republican Ashley Moody was appointed to the seat last year and is running to hold onto the position. The seat will again be on the ballot in 2028 for a full six-year term. In Georgia, Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff is running for re-election, seeking a second six-year term.<\/p>\n
But with those similarities \u2013 there are some notable differences between how the elections will play out in the Sunshine State and the Peach State.<\/p>\n
Open primaries vs. closed primaries<\/p>\n
Florida is a closed primary state, and Georgia is an open primary state. That leads to differences in the voter registration process, as well as what happens when voters go to the polls.<\/p>\n
In Florida, voters can choose to affiliate with a party when they register to vote, whether it\u2019s the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, or one of the other political parties. Or, they can choose no party affiliation, which is the choice of about a quarter of Florida\u2019s registered voters.<\/p>\n
In order to vote in a given party\u2019s primary in Florida, you must be affiliated with that party by the \u201cbook closing\u201d date, about a month before election day. If you are not affiliated with a party, or you chose one of the other parties that does not have a primary slate of candidates, you\u2019ll receive a non-partisan primary ballot. That can still give voters significant input, as races such as school board and judicial races are non-partisan and open to all voters. If there are only two candidates in one of these races, it will be decided in the primary, before the process even reaches the general election in November.<\/p>\n
Florida also has an exception of sorts to the closed party primary rule, known as the universal primary contest. For races where all candidates are of the same party, and the primary winner would face no opposition in the general election, the primary is open to all voters, regardless of party affiliation. However, if there are any other candidates, including no party affiliation candidates, or even a write-in candidate, the primary remains closed to voters of just that one party.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, Georgia is an open primary state, meaning voters do not register with a specific party. When primary day arrives, they can choose a Democratic ballot, a Republican ballot, or a non-partisan ballot. Voters can choose a different party ballot from one primary to the next. <\/p>\n
However, there is a catch to making that choice. If a primary goes to a runoff (more on that in a moment), a voter can\u2019t switch from one party ballot in the primary to the other party\u2019s ballot in the runoff. But, if a voter didn\u2019t vote in the primary, they are open to their choice of ballot in any resulting runoff election.<\/p>\n
Runoffs vs. no runoffs<\/p>\n
In Florida\u2019s party primaries, the candidate who gets the most votes wins the primary, and advances to the general election. But it wasn\u2019t always that way. Through the 2000 election year, Florida held a \u201csecond primary,\u201d which was essentially a runoff. But the state scrapped the second primary in 2002 and 2004 before a 2005 law abolished it entirely. In a non-partisan race appearing on the primary ballot, a candidate must still get more than 50 percent of the vote to win it outright. Otherwise, the top two candidates advance to the general election.<\/p>\n
In Georgia, most races, whether in the primary election or the general election, require a candidate to get more than half the vote in order to win. That means a crowded primary field will likely cause a race to go to a primary runoff. Right now, with Georgia holding its primary in May, the primary runoff is held in June.<\/p>\n
Georgia\u2019s runoff rule also applies to the general election and can come into play if there is a third candidate on the ballot, whether they are an unaffiliated or third-party candidate. In recent years, there have been runoffs in several high-profile statewide races. <\/p>\n