VICKSBURG - For wonks fascinated by the science of politics, it's a garden of delights.
For people who just want to have elections and vote competent, decent people into public posts, Judge Allen Pepper's ruling provoked something different. There was likely a chorus of "Huh?" if the ruling was noticed at all.
It's compelling stuff, and the outfall is serious. It appears Mississippi elections may soon undergo major reform.
The decision by Judge Pepper came June 15 in a case filed during the 2006 federal primary season by attorney Ellis Turnage of Cleveland.
Turnage, an ally of U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., had surveyed the landscape and didn't like what he saw. Specifically, Thompson was facing a challenge from another Democrat, state Rep. Chuck Espy.
There was reason to believe that Republicans in the 2nd Congressional District might tacitly align with Espy's supporters and, together, form a voting bloc large enough to unseat Thompson in the primary.
So Turnage asked the federal court to rule that only bona fide Democrats could vote in the primary - forcing Republicans to mind their own beeswax.
Pepper demurred at the time, saying that election was too soon. But he promised to hear the case this year, did, and issued the only logical ruling:
- Political parties exist for like-minded people to increase their voting strength, a point recognized in Mississippi law.
- Party primaries are held so these like-minded people can narrow the field to their strongest candidate to go up against the other party's strongest candidate.
- It makes no sense to let the opposition "cross over" and intentionally thwart another party's party.
Problem is, of course, there's no way to look at a poll book in Mississippi and tell who is a Republican and who is a Democrat. This state has open registration. Any resident 18 years or older can sign up 30 days before any election and from that point on alternate among party primaries each election cycle.
Historically, this has not been an issue because for more than a century Mississippi was essentially a one-party state. There were no Republicans until the Nixon era. But they've grown in numbers and even elected two governors since.
Thompson said he supported the aim of the suit, but was not a party to it. It wound up being filed in the name of the Mississippi Democratic Party, although top state Democrats have said they didn't like it - and don't like Pepper's ruling either.
Lots of things could happen in the courts and in the Legislature over the next several months to accomplish what Pepper said must be done: grant parties the power to exclude nonmembers from primary voting.
The most drastic result could be a total reregistration of all voters in the state with the requirement that each person declare a party affiliation or independent status.
This would bring Mississippi into alignment with most other states, where registration by party is already a reality.
And it would allow the political parties to limit, if they so chose, voting in their primaries to "card-carrying" members.
What's that?
Card-carrying?
Isn't that the same as voter ID?
Well, yes, it certainly is.
Just one of the many twists in Pepper's ruling is that in this state where the Legislature has resisted requiring voter identification cards, they could become a requirement, at least for primaries. To top it off, this change comes at the request of the Democratic Party of Mississippi.
The more serious issue - and it is serious - is that most Mississippians are not accustomed to party politics. People here voted, say, for Mike Parker, who was defeated by Ronnie Musgrove eight years ago, because they liked Mike Parker. It didn't matter so much that Parker was a Republican and Musgrove a Democrat. We think person, not party.
But say reregistration is ordered and a person signs up as a Republican because she wants to support a GOP candidate in a presidential primary. Two years later when she goes to the polls to support her veteran county supervisor - a Democrat facing a primary challenge - the party can send her away.
See? Only registered Democrats would get to choose Democrats. Republicans, who would have the power to close their primaries, have said all along they'll keep theirs open.
Mixing votes - backing some Democrats and some Republicans - would continue in general elections, but that will just confuse people more.
Pepper's ruling may be appealed. There could be legislative intervention. Many things might happen.
But if it stands - and again it's a common-sense ruling - Mississippi elections will change in momentous ways.
