Decline to State (DTS) was an affiliation designation on the

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the mo ...

voter registration form that allows voters to register to vote without choosing a

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

affiliation. It is similar to what in other states would be called declaring oneself as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

. , 23.97% of California's registered voters have "no party preference". In February 1999, 13% of registered voters in California declined to state a party affiliation. That figure had risen to 18% by January 2006, and to 20% by October 2008. The growth of the category Decline to State follows California's switch from the closed primary to an

open primary Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...

system in 1996 following the adoption of Proposition 198. Until 1996, only

voter Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns. Democracies elect holde ...

s who were registered with a political party could vote in that party's primary election. In the June 1998 and March 2000

primary elections Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...

, voters could vote for any candidate in any party's primary. On June 26, 2000, the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. Federal tribunals in the United States, federal court cases, and over Stat ...

decided in ''California Democratic Party, et al.'' v. ''Jones'' 530 U.S. 567 (2000)California Democratic Party v. Jones
Cornell University Law School that California's open primary system violated the right of free association. In January 2001, following the passage of SB28 (Ch. 898, Stats. 2000), a new modified closed system took effect in which voters registered with a particular party can only vote in that party's primary, but voters who decline to state a party affiliation can vote in one party's primary if the party agrees to allow it (California Elections Code §2151). The Democratic and Republican parties had both allowed voters who decline to state a party affiliation to vote in all of their respective primary elections until the 2008 presidential primary election, in which the Republican party disallowed the practice.

References

External links

California Secretary of State on No Party Preference
Elections in the United States Politics of California

See also

References

External links