May 2012 presidential primary likely to be canceled

OLYMPIA — Washington is on the verge of canceling the 2012 presidential primary because it costs a bundle to conduct yet the results carry little sway with the political parties.

On Tuesday, the House joined the Senate in supporting a bill to cancel the May 2012 election. The move would save

the state $10 million while erasing the opportunity most of the state’s voters would use to express their preference for the Republican and Democratic nominees for president.

Senate Bill 5119 now goes to Gov. Chris Gregoire for her expected signature.

Presidential primaries are a rather new thing in Washington.

Born out of a 1989 initiative, the first one ever held in the state was in 1992. They’ve been conducted in 1996, 2000, and 2008 with the 2004 vote also canceled to save money.

But results of the primaries are not binding on the political parties, which make the election an easy budget-cutting target.

Washington’s Democratic Party relies solely on precinct caucuses to select its nominee for president and allocate its delegates to the national nominating convention. The state Republican Party uses caucuses and primary results in choosing a nominee and determining its delegates.

Cancelation is not a unanimous idea in the Legislature.

The Senate passed the bill April 6 by a 34-15 margin. Fourteen Republicans, including Sen. Val Stevens, R-Arlington, and one Democrat dissented. Tuesday’s House vote was 69-28. Of those, 24 were Republicans and four were Democrats.

Secretary of State Sam Reed issued a statement Tuesday in which he commiserated with fans of the primary.

“We absolutely prefer the presidential primary to the old caucus system. In any other year, we’d be the LAST people to suggest not holding the 2012 presidential primary,” he said.

“But $10 million is a lot of money when the budget gap is $5 billion and there are so many needs out there, and the voters have compelled Olympia to solve the crisis without new taxes,” he said.