Statement on "Shocking" Primary Problem Milestone: 75% of the House is Already Decided

More than 75% of the U.S. House of Representatives will effectively be decided following Tuesday’s congressional primaries in Conn., Minn., Vt., and Wisc. - before a single vote has been cast in the 2024 general election. The Unite America Institute has been tracking the 2024 Primary Problem, exposing how few voters determine most elections in party primaries.

Including tomorrow, 42 states - with a collective total of 385 U.S. House seats - will have held congressional primaries. According to Cook Political Report, 338 of those seats are uncompetitive in the general election, which is 78% of the entire House of Representatives.

Nick Troiano, Unite America Executive Director and author of The Primary Solution, issued the following statement:

“Today’s ‘milestone’ should be shocking. We shouldn’t accept that more than three-quarters of our U.S. representatives have already been pre-elected before most of us weigh in. Can anyone really say with a straight face that America’s elections reflect the will of the voters?

It’s not all bad news, though. Voters across the country who are tired of the dysfunction caused by the Primary Problem are leading the charge to make our elections fairer. With a record number of initiatives for open primaries on the November ballot, 2024 is a historic opportunity to give millions of eligible Americans a more meaningful vote.”

Voter-led initiatives to open or abolish party primaries are already on the ballot in Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota, and Washington, D.C.; and Arizona, Colorado, and Montana are on track to qualify in the coming weeks.