Elections & terms
primary election
The state-run election in which each party's voters choose its nominee for the general election. Rules (open, closed, top-two) vary by state.
In full
Primaries are run by states under their own laws, which is why the calendar and rules differ everywhere: closed primaries limit voting to registered party members, open primaries do not, and a few states use top-two or ranked systems that reshape the choice entirely. For president, primaries and caucuses allocate delegates to the parties' national conventions, which formally nominate.
Also written as: primaries
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A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.