Primary
An election run before the general election in which voters choose which candidates will represent each party (partisan primaries) or narrow the field of candidates for an office (nonpartisan primaries). Primaries are administered by the states, and their rules — open, closed, top-two — vary widely.
An election run before the general election in which voters choose which candidates will represent each party (partisan primaries) or narrow the field of candidates for an office (nonpartisan primaries). Primaries are administered by the states, and their rules — open, closed, top-two — vary widely.
Example: In nonpartisan primaries, candidates run without party affiliation on the ballot; if no candidate wins a set threshold (typically 50%), the candidates with the highest vote totals advance to a general or run-off election, as the Election Assistance Commission describes.
Common misconception: Primaries are private party events. They are run and paid for by state and local election offices under state law, even though they decide party nominees.
Sources: U.S. Election Assistance Commission, primaries overview, https://www.eac.gov; U.S. Election Assistance Commission, eac.gov/vote — voting in your state, https://www.eac.gov/vote