Texas GOP Sues State Over Refusal to Close Primary Elections

The Republican Party of Texas is asking a federal judge to end open primary elections, saying it leads to subterfuge from moderate and left-leaning voters who cross over to the GOP ranks for the purpose of opposing the party’s preferred candidates.

The party in a lawsuit accuses the state of violating its First Amendment associational rights by refusing to honor the wishes of the vast majority of GOP voters who want to end open primaries.

“In an election where the Republican primary candidate is very likely to win the general election, a Democrat or independent voter may reasonably and strategically decide to vote in the Republican primary to help nominate the Republican candidate that he finds least objectionable,” the party wrote in the complaint.

Republicans in Texas have won every statewide general election since 1994.

The suit was filed Thursday in a single judge division in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas; it’ll be heard by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, an appointee of President Donald Trump.

Texas doesn’t register voters by party, for years a sore subject for the GOP. Instead, voters can choose to vote in the Republican or Democratic primary when they check-in at a voting location.

Last year, the Republican Party primary ballot asked voters if primary elections should be restricted to only registered Republicans. Nearly three-fourths of voters said yes.

In response, GOP lawmakers proposed legislation that would’ve closed primaries. However, it died in the recent legislative session, and the Republican party says Secretary of State Jane Nelson now refuses to close primaries.

The party says that even if it wins in court, there’s not enough time to close the March 2026 primary. The soonest the change could take effect is in 2028, it says.

The Republican Party of Texas is represented by Lehotsky Keller Cohn LLP.

The case is Republican Party of Texas v. Texas, N.D. Tex., No. 2:25-cv-00200-z, 9/4/25.