PA: The Case for an Open Primary

From the Pittsburgh Tribune Review:

One in eight Pennsylvania taxpayers cannot vote for governor in the May 18 primary. "We pay taxes, and we can't participate," said Stephen Bouikidis, a software company executive from Jenkintown in Montgomery County, who is a founder of Independent Pennsylvanians, a group advocating open primaries. "This is the biggest issue for us. We're locked out of the system."

Bouikidis, a former Republican who has been an independent voter for 15 years, said when people tell him he could "join a party" to vote in a primary, he says "no thanks." "In some ways, I am taking a stance against a two-party system," he said. He registered to vote as a person choosing "no affiliation." Pennsylvania is one of 14 states with closed primaries, said Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-York, who has authored a bill to allow independents to vote in primaries.