Consolidated May presidential primary bill advances out of committee in Idaho Senate

Late last week the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee held a committee hearing on S 1398, a second bill introduced in the upper chamber to restore the presidential primary in the Gem state and consolidate that preference vote with the primaries for other offices in the state. Additionally, the legislation would schedule the election for the Monday after the first Tuesday in May, marginally earlier than the mid- to late May date on which the state primary has traditionally been conducted.

The intent is largely similar to that of a previous bill. However, as Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane noted in testimony to the committee on Friday, March 20, the reason for the second bill was largely technical, aligning all language across statutes with the earlier May date (something the previous version failed to fully account for). While McGrane again did not support this legislation, the secretary of state does support the reestablishment of the presidential primary in some form. 

There is a competing bill that has been passed by the state House. Only, that bill would reinstitute a separate presidential primary and schedule that election for Super Tuesday. That scheduling dispute (and the costs associated with each of the active versions) is the same impasse that derailed efforts to bring the presidential primary back for the 2024 cycle (after it was mistakenly cancelled). 

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Noteworthy: There was no opposition testimony to the consolidated primary concept. Representatives from the League of Women Voters in Idaho voiced support and members of the panel who responded to testimony were all generally behind the idea. The subsequent voice vote to move the measure on to the full Senate with a "Do Pass" recommendation passed with no apparent dissenting votes. 

S 1398 now moves on to the full Senate for consideration.

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See also:

2/19/26: Idaho legislators again try to resurrect presidential primary in the Gem state

3/4/26: "Idaho Legislature might bring back presidential primary, after caucus had ‘dismal’ turnout"

3/10/26: Super Tuesday primary bill passes Idaho House

3/19/26: Second May presidential primary bill introduced in Idaho Senate

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This action has been added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Second May presidential primary bill introduced in Idaho Senate

Earlier this week, the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee brought forth a subsequent bill to reestablish the presidential preference vote in the Gem state and consolidate the election with those primaries for state and local office in May. 

The intent of S 1398 is much the same as the previous bill introduced by the committee. It would restore the presidential primary, hold it concurrent with the other primaries and marginally shift up the date of the consolidated election. Instead of falling on the third Tuesday in May, as has been the tradition in Idaho, the election would fall on the Tuesday after the first Monday in May. The resulting primary would end up one or two weeks earlier than has been the custom in Idaho, depending on the year.

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Noteworthy: Although the two state Senate bills would have virtually the same impact in the area of the presidential primary, the newly introduced legislation is a more encompassing elections bill. And since S 1398 is on the Senate State Affairs Committee agenda already, it is likely that it has supplanted S 1366 as the main vehicle for the presidential primary reestablishment in the upper chamber. 

Both Senate bills differ from the House-passed version. 

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See also:

2/19/26: Idaho legislators again try to resurrect presidential primary in the Gem state

3/4/26: "Idaho Legislature might bring back presidential primary, after caucus had ‘dismal’ turnout"

3/10/26: Super Tuesday primary bill passes Idaho House

3/25/26: Consolidated May presidential primary bill advances out of committee in Idaho Senate

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This action has been added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Super Tuesday primary bill passes Idaho House

Sans debate and discussion and with merely a brief introduction by the bill's sponsor, HB 638 passed the Idaho House by a vote of 45-23 on Monday, March 9. While the legislation split the majority Republican caucus in the lower chamber, a clear majority of them supported the move to reinstate a separate presidential primary and schedule the election for the first Tuesday in March. Seven of the nine House Democrats were behind the measure with just one dissenting vote and one absence. 

The bill would return the presidential nomination process in the Gem state to the way things were for 2020 before the presidential primary was repealed in 2023.

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Noteworthy: The seeming ease with which this legislation glided through the House should not be misread. The rubber likely hits the road at this juncture because there is competing legislation in the state Senate that would not only bring back the presidential primary but consolidate it with the primaries for other offices across the state in early May. 

Now there are two issues that separate these bills:

1. Timing of the primary -- March or May.
2. Price tag -- $2.5m for a separate presidential primary in March or rolling the presidential preference vote into the May primary at no additional cost.

These are not uncommon themes when it comes to introducing or reintroducing a presidential primary into the elections landscape in a given state. And this will all be a topic of discussion as things shift to the state Senate now. But it was in 2023 also when an oversight cost the state its presidential primary. 

And most in Idaho seem to support the shift back to the primary. 

While he remained neutral on the House bill (separate March primary), Secretary of State Phil McGrane reiterated in the House State Affairs Committee hearing late last week his support for a primary over caucuses, echoing the support for such a transition that he had voiced in response to the filing of the Senate bill (consolidated May primary).

Additionally, the state Republican Party is also in favor a change back to the presidential primary. However, the party is not undecided as to when the election should scheduled. In a resolution adopted during the state party's summer meeting, the party sided with the earlier, March option. 

Still, the price tag on that March primary (the House version) is going to potentially cause some problems. However, part of the pinch there is supposed to be offset by the $50k filing fee for the separate presidential primary that is layered into the House measure. 

Regardless, both bills now sit before the Senate State Affairs Committee (or will when the House-passed bill is transmitted to the upper chamber). 

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See also:

2/19/26: Idaho legislators again try to resurrect presidential primary in the Gem state

3/4/26: "Idaho Legislature might bring back presidential primary, after caucus had ‘dismal’ turnout"

3/19/26: Second May presidential primary bill introduced in Idaho Senate

3/25/26: Consolidated May presidential primary bill advances out of committee in Idaho Senate

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This action has been added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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The 2028 Annotated Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Missouri House Elections Committee reports amended Super Tuesday primary bill "do pass"

The story of the 2026 legislative session in Jefferson City thus far has been one of obstacles to legislation intended to restore the Show-Me state's presidential primary. Two broad elections bills, one in the House and one in the Senate, saw provisions to reestablish the presidential primary and schedule the election for Super Tuesday removed at the committee stage. Another measure calling for a slightly later March presidential primary sits idle in the upper chamber. 

But the remaining two presidential primary bills in the House -- HB 2387 and HB 2480 -- have been merged in executive session of the House Elections Committee and reported out with a "do pass" recommendation. Additionally, during that March 3 hearing, the committee adopted an amended version of the legislation, dropping sections in the introduced bill pertaining to no-excuse absentee voting in the primary and adding language binding national convention delegates based on the results of the primary. 

The latter change was spurred by feedback the bill's sponsor on the committee got during a February 3 hearing for the bill. It was in that early February hearing where some familiar themes were once again raised by opponents of the primary. In fact, much of the opposition echoed comments from an earlier hearing for the omnibus House elections bill that ended with the presidential primary section being stripped from the legislation.

HB 2387/2480 passed the House Elections Committee as amended by a 10-2 vote in favor.

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Noteworthy: While the adopted committee substitute for HB 2387/2480 addressed the binding concerns of some opponents, it did not also include one of their other sticking points that has emerged not only in 2026 but in past sessions in Missouri: closing the open primary system to registered members of a party. But the bill that now moves on to the House Rules Committee for consideration does include language allocating national convention delegates on a proportional basis and binding those delegates based on the primary results for through the first ballot vote at the national convention. 

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See also: 

12/10/25: Missouri Senate bills prefiled to reinstate presidential primary

12/18/25: Missouri House again tees up host of bills to resurrect the defunct Show-Me state presidential primary

1/28/26: "House committee kills plan to reinstate Missouri presidential primary"

2/3/26: Another one bites the dust: Missouri Senate bill stripped of provision to reestablish a presidential primary

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The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

"Idaho Legislature might bring back presidential primary, after caucus had ‘dismal’ turnout"

The Idaho Capital Sun's Kyle Pfannenstiel has the latest on another bill in Boise to reinstate the presidential primary in the Gem state:

"Ahead of the 2028 presidential election, the Idaho Legislature is considering at least two competing bills to bring back the presidential primary election.

"One bill headed to the House floor, House Bill 638, would have the state hold the presidential primary election in March — separately from the state’s May primary elections for state legislative seats.

"The bill, sponsored by Rep. Kyle Harris, R-Lewiston, would also require presidential candidates to pay a $50,000 fee to have their name on Idaho’s ballots. The fees are meant to help offset the state’s estimated $2.5 million cost to run the next presidential primary.

"A separate bill, introduced in the Senate State Affairs Committee on Wednesday, would hold Idaho’s presidential primary election in May in tandem with the state’s other primary elections. Bill sponsor Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, said the caucus 'estranges a lot of voters from the process.'”

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Noteworthy: FHQ has discussed the House bill introduced last month. The lower chamber's version envisions a separate Super Tuesday presidential primary in Idaho. The Senate's newly introduced version -- S 1366 -- would follow the lead of both bills the Senate State Affairs Committee brought forth during the 2024 legislative session. As then, Sen. Guthrie's measure on behalf of the committee would bring the state-run presidential primary back, but would consolidate the presidential preference vote with the primaries for other offices.  

Only, this new legislation splits the difference with those two 2024 bills on the timing of the consolidated election. Whereas one of the competing 2024 bills sought to consolidate the presidential primary with the Idaho primary traditionally scheduled on the third Tuesday in May, the other proposed moving the concurrent primaries together up to the third Tuesday in April. [Neither advanced in 2024.]

The 2026 compromise? 

Again, split the difference. The Senate State Affairs Committee bill this session would bring the presidential primary back but shift the consolidated primary up a couple(-ish) of weeks to the Tuesday after the first Monday in May. 

Yes, that is marginally earlier, but no, it is unlikely to be much closer to the area of the calendar when presidential nominations are typically decided in recent years. As a result, the question before the Idaho legislature in 2026 is over the money it will take to fund a new and separate presidential primary or to save that money by reinstating the presidential preference vote on the later May primary ballot. 

...or legislators could punt on the matter once again and leave things as they are. 

For what it is worth Pfannenstiel notes that Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane supports the primary (over caucuses). As he said:

"I’ve heard it resoundingly in my role that Idahoans want to be able to vote. Anything that the Legislature can do to restore the presidential primary to make that happen, I’m in support of."

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See also:

2/19/26: Idaho legislators again try to resurrect presidential primary in the Gem state

3/10/26: Super Tuesday primary bill passes Idaho House

3/19/26: Second May presidential primary bill introduced in Idaho Senate

3/25/26: Consolidated May presidential primary bill advances out of committee in Idaho Senate

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This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Nevada Democrats respond to questions raised at January DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting

In a letter dated March 2, 2026, the Nevada Democratic Party has responded to questions posed by DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee members at the panel's January 31 meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Questions there ranged from those specific to the bid of Democrats in the Silver state for an early calendar spot in 2028 and broader questions the committee had for all early state applicants. 

The letter:

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Noteworthy: Look, Nevada Democrats have a strong case for an early slot on the 2028 Democratic presidential primary calendar, if not the first spot (for which the state party is aiming). 

The primary is already early. [The inclusion of Nevada's primary could be a part of a path of least resistance for the DNC.]

The electorate is diverse on a number of fronts that could be perceived as helpful to the national party's general election efforts.

What potentially hurts Nevada Democrats' cause -- more so vying for the first-in-the-nation honor rather than merely being included in the early window -- are factors that are outside of the state party's control. 

Fair or not, Nevada cannot change the fact that it is in the Pacific time zone. Democrats there can lean into that as the party has in the letter above, making the case that being west coast-adjacent is another diversity box that Nevada's primary checks. 

And while changes could be made to election administration to help expedite vote counting in particular, with a Republican in the governor's mansion in Carson City, such changes are less likely than if a Democrat held that office. Still, in the face of arguments that have already been raised in RBC meetings about the calendar that Nevada may struggle to count primary votes in a timely manner, the state party has responded thusly...

With universal vote by mail, seven days of in-person early voting, county-wide Election Day vote centers, automatic voter registration, same-day registration, and a ballot cure process, Nevada has some of the most progressive voter access laws in the country. As Nevada’s voting preferences have shifted from in-person early voting to voting by mail, changes have been adopted to expedite the tabulation and reporting of votes at the county level. County election offices are now able to begin counting mail and dropbox ballots beginning 15 days prior to election day. Upon the close of polls on Election Day, counties will report all mail, dropbox, and in-person early vote totals received prior to Election Day, followed by Election Day in-person totals, and any mail or dropbox ballots received on Election Day. Given the smaller voter universe relative to the general election and the limited scope of the presidential primary ballot, this process will be expeditious.

Left unanswered is whether and how these new measures have been stress tested. FHQ is not suggesting that they have not, but they certainly have not been tested under the intense spotlight of a presidential nomination race, especially if Nevada ended up with the first sanctioned primary on the Democratic side. That will not change between now and 2028, but Nevada Democrats can come armed with data from the midterm primaries in June and perhaps the general election in November if the Rules and Bylaws Committee has yet to finalize the party's early calendar lineup by that point in time. That may additionally aid in allaying any lingering fears members of the panel may have.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Some additional thoughts on the Democrats' recent 2028 primary calendar meeting 

Learning, incentives, appearance versus reality and the limits of the national parties in calendar crafting

"Pete Buttigieg stays out of fight over NH primary"

Former Transportation secretary and Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg was in New Hampshire late last on the hustings for Democrats running for office this year in the Granite state. Adam Sexton at WMUR out of Manchester got the secretary on record about New Hampshire's place in the national party's plans for an early calendar lineup for 2028:

Sexton: 

You were very diplomatic during the administration in terms of the debates at the DNC about New Hampshire first-in-the-nation status. The Granite state wants it back now. Are you going to be on New Hampshire's side and say New Hampshire should go first? 

Buttigieg:

I respect that I am not one of the people who gets to make the rules or make those decisions. What I will say is that campaigning in New Hampshire made me, I think, a better public servant. The conversations that I had, the way that the size, the scale and the civic spirit of the state really forces people on the national stage to stop and pay attention to things on a more immediate human scale. I think that’s a very healthy thing to have in our politics."

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Noteworthy: Look, clearly I fell prey to the headline to this one. There really is not a whole lot there. Buttigieg was, to borrow Sexton's word, diplomatic in response to the question about being on "New Hampshire's side" in the 2028 calendar discussions. And not to make a mountain out of a molehill, but a couple of things:

1. Buttigieg's nonresponse is, in and of itself, notable. It may have been missing in 2024, but one does not have to go very far back in time before that to find ample evidence of candidates falling over themselves to defend New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation status while campaigning there. Buttigieg did not, well, pander in his brief answer to Sexton's question. Instead, he deferred to the process the DNC has laid out for deciding on the early calendar for 2028. The DNC may not have kept New Hampshire from being the (unsanctioned) first contest in 2024 and it may not have kept all candidates out of the state then, but the change in process has kept candidates -- candidate, singular, I suppose -- from reflexively defending New Hampshire traditional status. And again, that is a noteworthy change.
2. Note also that Buttigieg plays up the virtues of retail politics, and specifically how the New Hampshire primary fills that role (or did so during his time campaigning there during the 2020 cycle). That is something that is a plank in the Rules and Bylaws Committee's criteria for the states vying for early 2028 slots on the calendar (see Section III of the Request for Proposals). However, at least some folks on the committee are questioning the value of in-primary-season retail politics in an ever-changing presidential nomination campaign landscape. How the committee deals with that will go a long way toward determining New Hampshire's place in the early part of the 2028 calendar. 

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Some additional thoughts on the Democrats' recent 2028 primary calendar meeting 

Learning, incentives, appearance versus reality and the limits of the national parties in calendar crafting

"S. Carolina Dems deploy Biden as they seek early primary"

Alex Thompson at Axios looks into the latest twist in the South Carolina Democrats' efforts to retain first-in-the-nation status for 2028:

"South Carolina Democrats are enlisting former President Biden to try to save the state's place as the first contest in the party's next presidential primary."

"Christale Spain, chair of South Carolina's Democratic Party, has been inviting members of the Democratic National Committee's Rules and Bylaws Committee to the Biden reception as part of the lobbying effort.

"'This intimate gathering offers a rare opportunity to spend time with the former president,' Spain wrote to one committee member."

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Noteworthy: It really is not clear at this point whether Biden inserting himself -- or being inserted by South Carolina Democrats -- will help sway members of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee as the panel continues to consider the states that will make up the party's early state line up on the 2028 presidential primary calendar. An argument could be made that it may prove persuasive to some members of the committee and backfire with others. 

Biden or not, the biggest feather Palmetto state Democrats have in their caps for the 2028 calendar process is the fact that the South Carolina presidential primary remains among the most, if not the most, mobile piece on the calendar board. The state funds and runs the primary but the state parties decide the date on which the election will fall. Importantly, any decision does not have to go through any state legislature or any other state governmental office first. 

The South Carolina primary, then, could be easily moved into any early position, including first-in-the-nation, or could just as easily be moved out of the early lineup altogether. But as of now, while there is a lot of competition from states vying to be the southern state with some representation on the early calendar, few yet have the ability to get into position that South Carolina Democrats have.

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Now we know which states they are looking at 

Some thoughts on the 2028 Democratic primary calendar process now that the deadline for state parties to apply with the DNC has come and gone

Idaho legislators again try to resurrect presidential primary in the Gem state

The Idaho House State Affairs Committee has introduced legislation to reestablish a separate state-funded presidential primary. H 638 would reinstitute the state-run election and schedule it for Super Tuesday (the first Tuesday in March), two and a half months earlier than the separate primaries for other offices in the Gem state.

This 2026 effort comes three years after Idaho legislators eliminated the separate presidential primary -- then scheduled for the second Tuesday in March -- ahead of the voting phase of the 2024 presidential nomination process.

Both parties in Idaho caucused in lieu of a primary in 2024.

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Noteworthy: A year after eliminating the separate presidential primary, legislators in Boise returned in 2024 to bring the primary back for future cycles. Competing plans sponsored by the Senate State Affairs Committee to reestablish the presidential primary and consolidate it with the primaries for other offices in either April or May (the position the Idaho primary has traditionally occupied) passed the upper chamber but went nowhere on the other side of the capitol. 

Those efforts differ from the 2026 bill brought by the House State Affairs Committee. That legislation proposes bringing back and funding a separate presidential primary election in early March. The price tag was a significant talking point during the elimination effort in 2023 and is often raised in Republican-controlled legislatures across the country during presidential primary bill consideration. It will likely be a topic of discussion if not a roadblock in Boise should H 638 progress during this current session.

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See also:

3/4/26: "Idaho Legislature might bring back presidential primary, after caucus had ‘dismal’ turnout"

3/10/26: Super Tuesday primary bill passes Idaho House

3/19/26: Second May presidential primary bill introduced in Idaho Senate

3/25/26: Consolidated May presidential primary bill advances out of committee in Idaho Senate

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This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Senate companion bill would also see Rhode Island presidential primary shifted to Super Tuesday

The Rhode Island state House bill to move the presidential primary in the Ocean state from April to the first Tuesday in March now has a companion in the upper chamber. 

S 2491, with language matching that of the version introduced in January in the lower chamber, would push the presidential primary currently scheduled for the fourth Tuesday in April up seven weeks to Super Tuesday.

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Noteworthy: The lead sponsor of the Senate version will also be responsible for shepherding the bill through the committee he chairs. Senator Matthew LaMountain (D-31st, Warwick) not only chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee but is among a list of co-sponsors that includes the entire leadership of the Democratic majority in the chamber, save the president of the Senate. That may ultimately reveal nothing about the bill's trajectory, but it may also indicate how much of a priority this move is within Democratic circles in the state. 

The House version was sponsored by a former chair of the Rhode Island Democratic Party. 

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Related:

2/9/26: Rhode Island legislation eyeing Super Tuesday presidential primary

This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Companion Super Tuesday presidential primary bill working through Kansas Senate

Kansas decision makers reinstated the state's once dormant, and then dead, state-run presidential primary for the 2024 cycle. But it was a one-off. The primary was codified but resurrected for just 2024. However, the experiment seemed to have worked because the major parties in the state preferred the primary to state party-run caucuses and are back, post-2024, advocating for the primary to return permanently in 2028 and beyond. 

The bill that the parties requested be introduced during the 2026 session of the Kansas legislature has cleared the initial committee stage on the House side. Under the provisions of that legislation, the presidential primary in the Sunflower state would be reestablished and scheduled for Super Tuesday, the first Tuesday in March in 2028 and every four years thereafter. And while that may ultimately be the legislative vehicle that brings the change to fruition, there is also a carbon-copy companion bill currently awaiting committee action in the state Senate. 

The House version has seen a technical amendment to a section not affecting the primary timing. If it passes the House, then that change will have to be reconciled with the bill in the upper chamber (or the House version advanced there).

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Noteworthy: Last year, the Kansas legislature passed and saw enacted a bill that would create a special election date on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March. FHQ wondered at the time if that was meant as a potential placeholder for a future presidential primary. It seems, in retrospect, that it was. But now, both 2026 bills cited above amend that placement even further, striking "after the first Monday" from current law. That would avoid the problem of the Kansas presidential primary not falling on Super Tuesday in years when March begins on a Tuesday. 

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Related: 

1/28/26: "KS GOP, Democratic leaders agree on state-run [presidential] primary"

This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

"Missing an opportunity," senator defers latest attempt to establish a presidential primary in Hawaii

Hawaii state Sen. Karl Rhoads (D-13th, Dowsett Highlands) has been attempting to pass legislation in the Aloha state to establish a state-run presidential primary since 2023. His bill that year to create a presidential primary election and schedule it for Super Tuesday passed the state Senate and later an amended version passed the state House with a new date: the first Tuesday after the first Monday in April. 

That change was never reconciled in the state Senate and the amended bill died on the final day of the 2023 legislative session. But Rhoads has kept the idea of an early April presidential primary in Hawaii alive in subsequent years. Legislation was introduced in both 2024 and 2025 and languished in committee both times.

However, Rhoads has returned in 2026 to try again. Legislation functionally similar to the where the previous three versions ended up was introduced at the start of the legislative session in Honolulu. But once again, it faced resistance. Both the Republican and Libertarian parties in Hawaii formally opposed the measure and Democrats, according to Rhoads in a committee hearing late last week, were not supportive either:

"Considering that both the Republicans and the Democrats -- and the Libertarians -- don't want it... I think we are missing an opportunity for improve... Well, people want to vote for president, so I think we're missing an opportunity. But I don't see it happening, so I'm just going to defer it."

So Rhoads pulled the bill, seemingly tabling the effort for the year. 

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Noteworthy: As was discussed during the aforementioned committee hearing, Hawaii remains one of the dwindling number of caucus states in the presidential nomination process. While there were a number of party-run primaries on the Democratic side in 2024, there were a handful of caucuses as well. Hawaii was one of just three caucus states for Democrats in the last cycle. Caucuses are not nearly as out of fashion among Republicans.

This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Third time's the charm for February West Virginia presidential primary?

For the third year running, West Virginia state House Delegate Michael Hite (R-92nd, Berkeley) has introduced legislation in Charleston to establish a separate presidential primary in the Mountain state and schedule the election for the third Tuesday in February (in 2028, February 16). 

Neither of the previous two efforts in 2024 or 2025 gained any traction and the latest attempt is likely to meet the same end. Regardless of any other points of dispute on this particular measure, the proposed date in HB 4751 would at the very least put the West Virginia primary in violation of national party delegate selection rules for both parties. Such a move would cost Mountain state Republicans slightly more than half of their delegation after the RNC's super penalty knocked the number of delegates down to twelve. And West Virginia Democrats would face an initial 50 percent penalty on their delegation under DNC rules. That could potentially rise to a full one hundred percent penalty or fall away to nothing. In the latter instance, West Virginia Democrats could make a case to the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee for a waiver based on the primary date change being made by a Republican-sponsored bill with seven Republican co-sponsors in addition to Republicans holding down unified control of state government. 

However, that is definitely putting the cart before the horse. This legislation would have to show some progress where the similar previous legislation died before this gets anywhere close to a discussion of penalties and waivers. And there is no indication yet that 2026 will be any different in Charleston than the past two have been for the scheduling of the presidential primary. 

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Noteworthy: One area where this bill is silent is on the matter of the fiscal impact. What would it cost the state to fund and conduct a February presidential primary separate from the primaries for other offices that it has customarily been concurrent with in mid-May in most post-reform presidential nomination cycles. Price tags of separate primary elections have been a bridge too far in other Republican-controlled states in recent cycles. 

This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

Rhode Island legislation eyeing Super Tuesday presidential primary

Legislation introduced in Providence in January would shift the presidential primary in the Ocean state up to Super Tuesday in 2028 and beyond. 

Current state law provides for a state-run presidential primary in Rhode Island to be conducted on the fourth Tuesday in April. The primary has begun every cycle since 2012 in that position on the calendar, often aligned with primaries in neighboring states across the northeast and mid-Atlantic. But the last two cycles have seen temporary changes to the contest's statutory late April date. The Covid pandemic forced a delay in 2020 and the primary was pushed up to the first Tuesday in April but only for the 2024 cycle. The date reverted to the end of April thereafter. 

And that is what H 7090, sponsored by Rhode Island Rep. Joseph McNamara (D-19th, Warwick & Cranston), seeks to change starting in 2028. The Rhode Island Democratic Party supports the move to Super Tuesday, citing alignment with primaries in Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont on the same date. Deputy Secretary of State Rob Rock spoke in favor of the change in a committee hearing as did elections administrators in Newport, who filed written support.

H 7090 was heard before the Rhode Island House State Government and Elections Committee on February 5. It, along with the other bills considered in the hearing, were held for further study. That does not kill or necessarily table any change. Rather, the committee voted before consideration of the items on their agenda not to vote on any bills before it that day. 

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Noteworthy: While a move to the first Tuesday in March would align the Rhode Island presidential primary with those in Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont, the Ocean state may not be the only one from the former northeastern/mid-Atlantic primary of the recent past to consider a move to Super Tuesday. There is active legislation in New York to make a similar move and Delaware was said at the recent DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee to have a Super Tuesday primary date as well. It does not, but that may be an indication of intent in the First state if Delaware is not granted an even earlier position in the early window by the DNC for 2028. Other states in the area may follow.

This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

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New York? On Super Tuesday? 

It has happened before and history may repeat itself in 2028. What are the implications?

"Democrats to shake up primary map, as 12 states vie to be among the first"

Maeve Reston from the Washington Post puts a wrap on last weekend's Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting in Puerto Rico:

"A powerful Democratic committee that will determine which states hold the party’s first nominating contests in the 2028 presidential race voted Saturday to advance 12 states that had applied to hold the first in the nation contests.

"Iowa had traditionally held the first caucuses, and New Hampshire has long relished its status as the first-in-the-nation primary. But in 2024, Joe Biden’s allies pressed the Democratic Party to move up South Carolina’s primary ahead of New Hampshire to highlight his strength among Black voters.

"After steep losses in the 2024 general election, party leaders have said they are ready to completely rethink the early-state lineup. On Saturday, Democrats advanced the 12 states that applied to hold the first nominating contests: Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.”

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Noteworthy: Contrast the "shake up" mentioned in the headline coupled with the "completely rethink the early-state lineup" above with the close to Reston's piece:

"States like New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada are all vying to hold the first nominating contest. Party officials from states like Georgia and Michigan have made it clear that they will be satisfied being anywhere in the early rotation."

The five states in that list? All were conditionally granted waivers by the DNC to conduct early contests in 2024. That does not make it sound like much of a "shake up."

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Some additional thoughts on the Democrats' recent 2028 primary calendar meeting 

Learning, incentives, appearance versus reality and the limits of the national parties in calendar crafting

Another one bites the dust: Missouri Senate bill stripped of provision to reestablish a presidential primary

Same story, different chamber. 

Last week, a sprawling elections bill passed the Missouri state House Elections Committee, but saw a provision reestablishing a presidential primary in the Show-Me state and scheduling the election for Super Tuesday stripped out in the process. 

Later on in the week, the Senate Local Government, Elections and Pensions Committee held a hearing on a similar legislation on its side of the capitol. And then the same thing happened in the upper chamber this week that happened to the House version a week ago: A substitute version of the bill passed the committee but without the presidential primary measure included.

Granted, comments from the Senate bill's sponsor in the initial hearing did not exactly bode well for the presidential primary section of the legislation. Sen. Sandy Crawford (R-28th, Buffalo), via Sarah Kellogg at St. Louis Public Radio:

"Crawford said that she wasn’t a fan of reinstating the primary, but that a lot of people want it back.

"'One of the things that I did hear that I thought was legitimate, if we don't have the presidential preferential primary, there's no way for military overseas to have any kind of a voice in the process,' Crawford said."

This notion of military personnel being disenfranchised by caucuses is not a new one in the on-again, off-again presidential primary dialog in the Missouri General Assembly. Rep. Rudy Veit (R-59th, Wardsville), who has a primary bill of his own still active on the House side, has raised it with regularity in the time since the Missouri presidential primary was eliminated in 2022.

However, once again, those concerns took a back seat to the price tag associated with the presidential primary. As Kellogg reported on the recent committee hearing on SB 836:

"Sen. Jamie Burger (R-27th, Benton), expressed concern over paying to conduct the presidential primary, especially with the necessity of a tighter state budget."

And those cost issues are often tied up with others in the context of these discussions, from the binding of national convention delegates to Missouri's open primary. 

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Noteworthy: At the start of the 2026 session in Jefferson City there were five bills that had presidential primary provisions appended to them. Two of those bills, one in the state House and another very similar to it in the state Senate, have moved out of committee but without the sections devoted to bringing the presidential primary back in the Show-Me state. The sponsor on the House side has said that she will try to add the primary back to the legislation on the floor via amendment. Yet, it is not clear that the Senate sponsor will follow that path in the upper chamber. 

Still, there are three other bills that remain active, two in the state House and one other in the state Senate.

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See also: 

12/10/25: Missouri Senate bills prefiled to reinstate presidential primary

12/18/25: Missouri House again tees up host of bills to resurrect the defunct Show-Me state presidential primary

1/28/26: "House committee kills plan to reinstate Missouri presidential primary"

3/5/26: Missouri House Elections Committee reports amended Super Tuesday primary bill "do pass"

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

"DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee Votes to Advance 12 States to Next Phase of 2028 Presidential Calendar Selection Process"

The following is a press release from the DNC on the January 31 Rules and Bylaws Committee that began to consider the submission materials from state parties applying for early state waivers in the 2028 presidential nomination process:

Today, at the January meeting of the Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC), the RBC reviewed applications for the early nominating window of the 2028 presidential calendar. The RBC received 12 applications for the early window and voted to advance all 12 of those states to the next phase of the process, which is an opportunity for states to deliver presentations to the Committee.

The states invited to present are: Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

RBC Co-Chairs Minyon Moore and James Roosevelt, Jr. released the following statement:

“Today, the Rules and Bylaws Committee took another crucial step forward to create a nominating calendar that delivers a strong, battle-tested Democratic nominee to take back the White House in 2028. The RBC remains committed to running a rigorous, efficient, and fair selection process and looks forward to states presenting their cases directly to the Committee in the coming months.”

DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement:

“As the Rules and Bylaws Committee continues their work to set the Democratic Party’s 2028 presidential nominating calendar, I commend the Committee for their commitment to a transparent and fair process that produces the strongest possible Democratic nominee.”

Background on the 2028 Calendar Process:

At the October 27, 2025 RBC meeting, the Committee passed a resolution outlining the next steps in determining the early window of the 2028 presidential nominating calendar. The Resolution established that the fundamental goal for the 2028 calendar process is to “produce the strongest possible Democratic nominee for president” and included the following requirements:

• The RBC must select between four and five states for the early window and must include one state from each of the DNC’s four geographic regions (East, Midwest, South, and West).
• The Committee will execute the calendar process “in the most transparent, open, and fair manner feasible,” while providing “adequate, clear, and timely notice on major milestones and requirements.”
• Three pillars will be used to evaluate early state applicants:
• Rigorousness: the lineup of early states must be a comprehensive test of candidates with diverse groups of voters that are key to winning the general election;
• Fairness: the lineup of early states must be affordable, practical for candidates, and not exhaust their resources unreasonably, precluding them from effectively participating in future contests;
• Efficiency: the practical ability to run a fair, transparent, and inclusive primary or caucus.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee moves all 12 states vying for early state status for 2028 to next stage 

State parties will now make in-person presentations to the panel for inclusion in the early window

"KS GOP, Democratic leaders agree on state-run [presidential] primary"

Melissa Brunner at WIBW (Topeka) on a bill before the Kansas House Committee on Elections:

"The chairs of the state’s Democratic and Republican parties say they agree that the state’s presidential preference primaries should be state-run.

"The House Elections Committee held a hearing Tuesday afternoon on a bill that would make a test-run in March 2024 a permanent policy.

"Before that, the parities each held their own statewide caucuses or primaries to decide the preferred candidate for their delegates.

"GOP chair Danedri Herbert and Democratic chair Jeanna Repass both say state-run primaries will ensure Kansans have their voices heard."

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Noteworthy: HB 2447 would reinstate a state-run presidential primary in the Sunflower state and permanently schedule the election for the first Tuesday in March every four years. 

Kansas legislators passed legislation in 2023 to reestablish a state-run presidential primary in the state, but it was a one-off, applying only to the 2024 cycle. As I wrote over at FHQ Plus around the time a number of bills were making the rounds in the statehouse...

Kansas has an interesting history with the presidential primary. Actually, Kansas has very little history with a presidential primary as the means of allocating delegates to the national conventions. Only twice in the post-reform era has the state officially held a primary: in 1980 and again in 1992. And from 1996 until 2012, the dance that the Kansas legislature would perform would be to not appropriate funds for a presidential primary election and change the date in the statute referencing the election to the next cycle. That routine ended for the 2016 cycle when the presidential primary was struck from the Kansas statutes altogether, eliminating the contest and the need to (not) fund it.

The current bill was brought forth on the request of the Kansas Republican Party Chair Danedri Herbert, is sponsored by the House Committee on Elections and has the support of both major parties in the state.

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This legislation will be added to the annotated 2028 presidential primary calendar over at our sister site, FHQ Plus.

"SC Republicans likely to keep coveted first-in-the-South presidential primary spot in 2028"

Anna Wilder of the Charleston Post & Courier updates the 2028 presidential primary calendar maneuvering on the Republican side:

"South Carolina Republicans likely will keep the coveted role of first-in-the-South on the 2028 presidential primary calendar after a Republican National Convention committee moved to secure that early slot last week.

"South Carolina has been the first Southern state to vote in the presidential primary since 1980, championing the significance of the position. For years, the state has consistently backed the person who would become the Republican presidential nominee. Only one candidate, Newt Gingrich in 2012, did not become the nominee after South Carolina voted for him.

"Tyson Grinstead, the South Carolina GOP committeeman, said the Jan. 22 committee meeting in Santa Barbara, Calif., was significant for the state. Members, including Grinstead, voted on a plan to keep the same calendar as before."

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Noteworthy: While it almost always seemed like the Presidential Nominating Process Committee, empowered by the RNC to reexamine the delegate selection rules, would vote to carry over the same early calendar lineup the national party has employed in recent cycles, it was perhaps not a mere formality. As Wilder highlighted:

"Those familiar with the decision said the spot has been competitive in the past and was again this year, as Florida had been eyeing the leadoff Southern spot. In 2012, Florida attempted to take it, but South Carolina moved its date up.

"Ultimately, the chair of the Florida Republican Party, Evan Power, made the motion for South Carolina to keep the spot at the Jan. 22 meeting, despite Florida’s effort to grab it."

Again, all signs consistently pointed toward Republicans once again carving out space before Super Tuesday on the 2028 presidential primary calendar for Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina (the latter two in some yet-to-be-determined order), but it appears that there was at least some room for other states to make a case. And just as Michigan had a history of trying to break through into the early window of the Democratic nomination process (before finding success), Florida has a history on the Republican side. 

Only, Republicans in the Sunshine state were not successful this time around. 

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The seeming absence of Georgia in these discussions is noteworthy as well. The Peach state secured a waiver (ultimately rescinded) from the DNC to conduct an early primary in 2024, but were unable to bring any move of the primary into the early window to fruition. In that process in 2023, there was some acknowledgment from the Republican secretary of state in Georgia of the value of an early presidential primary. But he punted any action on that idea to 2028. 

Thus far, the notion of placing general election battlegrounds into the early window of the presidential primary calendar is one more firmly held on the Democratic side than among Republicans. ...for this cycle anyway.

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The report from the Presidential Nominating Process Committee now moves on to a vote by the RNC Rules Committee. A majority vote there would send it to the full RNC for consideration, where a three-quarters vote is required for final passage. 

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Republican rule changes for the 2028 cycle 

The RNC's work on delegate rules isn't done, but the baseline is different on several fronts from the regulations that guided the 2024 process

"House committee kills plan to reinstate Missouri presidential primary"

Rudi Keller at the Missouri Independent with the latest from Jefferson City on the efforts to resurrect the state-run presidential primary in the Show-Me state:

"The push to reinstate Missouri’s presidential primary suffered a defeat Tuesday when the House Elections Committee voted to remove it from a wide-ranging elections bill.

"On a voice vote, the committee removed the provision from the bill. The measure also extends the period for 'no-excuse absentee' voting from two to four weeks.

"The committee then voted 13-1, with two abstentions, to send the bill to the full House for debate.

"The primary is unpopular with well-organized groups who prefer the caucus system traditionally used to select Missouri’s delegates to presidential nominating conventions, said the bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Peggy McGaugh, a Republican from Carrollton."

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Noteworthy: Mark one presidential primary bill off the list in Missouri. Four remain active in the 2026 legislative session, two in the House and two others in the state Senate. The dispute has been a consistent one, post-2022, when the presidential primary was nixed in an omnibus elections bill that passed in the waning hours of the legislature's term that year. It boils down to something that Keller later picked up on in his synopsis of the committee's actions during its executive session on the bill on January 27:

"A caucus is easier to control than the primary, she said. Even though Missouri’s primary is just a popularity contest — no delegates are pledged based on the result — opponents don’t want evidence they are not the majority of their party’s voters, she [bill sponsor, McGaugh] said."

But here's the thing: The premise that no delegates are bound, that, in turn, the primary is a beauty contest and, as a result, that the state should not fund the election is built on the thinnest reasoning. Yet, it keeps coming up session after session in Jefferson City when these primary bills face scrutiny in committee (or on the floor). In fact, the sponsor of the controversial 2022 elections bill that eliminated the presidential primary, Rep. John Simmons (R-109th, Washington), raised it in the committee hearing for McGaugh's HB 1871 two weeks ago:

"Why are we having a presidential primary when we aren't binding the electors [delegates] and the parties are still running a caucus and technically deciding electors there and we the taxpayers are paying $10m for a show election that doesn't actually have legal meaning to it." 

Never mind that the delegates were bound based on the results of the primary when it was still codified in state law (and the caucuses in 2024 when it was not). But that was a function of the parties' rules -- at both the state and national levels -- defining the nature of the binding and not the state, based on state law. 

Missouri Republicans, those in the legislature most firmly opposed to the return of the state-funded primary anyway, seem to have trust issues with the state party. The party rules have consistently bound delegates. However, those same rules -- rules that are very much consistent with those in other states in the national Republican process -- 1) allow for the release of delegates bound to candidates who have dropped out of the race for the nomination and 2) allow delegates aligned with one candidate to be selected and bound to another candidate (again, based on the primary or caucus results). Those Show-Me state Republicans in opposition to the primary want a legal remedy to those outs that Republican delegates have, to lock them into the binding at the convention no matter what.

That is what keeps killing these bills in Missouri. And HB 1871 is yet another casualty. 

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And just as a postscript, it should be noted that when McGaugh is talking about "control" she is noting control of the presidential primary (or caucus) electorate. This came up in hearing as well, but there are a number of legislative Republicans in the Show-Me state who are not keen on the open primary there. Caucuses allow the Republican Party in Missouri to restrict the electorate to Republicans only, shielding the election from the potential participation of Democrats. 

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See also: 

12/10/25: Missouri Senate bills prefiled to reinstate presidential primary

12/18/25: Missouri House again tees up host of bills to resurrect the defunct Show-Me state presidential primary

2/3/26: Another one bites the dust: Missouri Senate bill stripped of provision to reestablish a presidential primary

3/5/26: Missouri House Elections Committee reports amended Super Tuesday primary bill "do pass"

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

The Annotated 2028 Presidential Primary Calendar

Tracking the evolution of the timeline of delegate selection events that will determine the next presidential nominees

"New Mexico Democrats seek to move up 2028 presidential primary, citing state's diverse electorate"

Dan Boyd at the Albuquerque Journal describes the efforts of New Mexico Democrats to nab an early calendar spot for 2028:

"New Mexico’s Democratic Party has launched a long shot bid to become one of the early primary states for the 2028 presidential election cycle.

"In their recent application to the Democratic National Committee, state party leaders touted New Mexico’s diverse electorate and relatively inexpensive media market as factors that set the state apart.

"'We submitted a bid to hold an early presidential primary because the Democratic Party is facing real national challenges — and New Mexico shows the path forward,' state party chairwoman Sara Attleson said in a statement.

"The state Democratic Party chairwoman, who was elected to the post last year, also cited the national Democratic Party's struggles to win support from rural, working-class voters."

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Noteworthy: "Long shot" is likely an apt way to describe the New Mexico Democratic Party's push to be included among the early states on the 2028 presidential primary calendar. That is not a statement about the merits of the bid from Democrats in the Land of Enchantment. Rather, it is an acknowledgment of the institutional barriers that make successful inclusion in the early window difficult for the state party there. Under the rules of the process the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has instituted for the 2028 cycle, at least one state from each of four regions across the country will be represented in the pre-Super Tuesday portion of the primary calendar. New Mexico is one of two states from the west region opposite an early state stalwart, Nevada. And Democrats in the Silver state already have an early primary -- first Tuesday in February -- codified in state law. At best, then, New Mexico Democrats are likely fighting for any fifth spot that may be at stake. And there may be better options among the pool of applicants than New Mexico for that position.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Now we know which states they are looking at 

Some thoughts on the 2028 Democratic primary calendar process now that the deadline for state parties to apply with the DNC has come and gone

"These Are the 12 States Vying to Kick Off Democrats’ 2028 Contest"

Reid Epstein, Lisa Lerer and Shane Goldmacher at The New York Times shed light on the 12 states that are vying for four or five early slots on the 2028 Democratic presidential primary calendar:

"Democrats in 12 states have applied to kick off the party’s 2028 presidential primary contest, pushing arguments about race, geography, size, diversity, the rural-urban divide and their relative status as battlegrounds, according to copies of hundreds of pages of application materials reviewed by The New York Times.

"The Democratic National Committee, which will decide the order, has said that one state from each of four regions will hold nominating contests in the so-called early window, the month before Super Tuesday. A bonus fifth state could also be selected. State parties in these places applied:

"West: Nevada and New Mexico

"South: Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia

"Midwest: Illinois, Iowa and Michigan

"East: New Hampshire and Delaware."

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Noteworthy: Fewer state parties submitted applications in 2026 as compared to 2022. Then, there were 20 state and territorial parties that threw their hats in the ring to be considered for early spots on the 2024 Democratic presidential primary calendar. Of those 20 from 2022, eight (8) state parties submitted applications again for the 2028 process (in alphabetical order): Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Four states submitted applications for early window consideration for the first time this time around: New Mexico, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. 

But why were there fewer applicants in 2026 relative to the process in 2022?

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Now we know which states they are looking at 

Some thoughts on the 2028 Democratic primary calendar process now that the deadline for state parties to apply with the DNC has come and gone

"What's in Iowa Democrats' bid to regain first-in-the-nation status?"

Brianne Pfannenstiel at the Des Moines Register weighs in on Iowa Democrats push to return to the early window for 2028:

"In its bid to regain a toehold in early days of the presidential nominating calendar, Iowa Democrats are arguing that the national party cannot build sustainable national majorities without reconnecting to rural America.

"To help the party accomplish that, Iowa Democrats are touting the flexibility they can provide with their caucuses. Faced with several years of upheaval and experimentation, state Democratic Party leaders say they can create a system that is more inclusive and transparent and eliminates many of the pitfalls that bedeviled it in 2020.

“'No other state has the knowledge, infrastructure and history of giving long-shot presidential candidates a fair chance,' party leaders wrote in an application to a panel of the Democratic National Committee that sets the presidential nominating calendar. 'When Iowa is included among the early states, we complement and represent an intentionally well-designed balance of our party’s values and priorities.'"

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Noteworthy: Iowa Democrats are treading a very fine line. The party obviously wants the caucuses back in the early window (if not to be first again) and are clearly bending over backwards to appear flexible in their application to the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC). However, that flexibility in method -- in-person caucusing, voting electronically, voting via telephone, vote-by-mail, etc. -- runs the risk of coming across as less flexible than a muddled a la carte menu of options from which the state party cannot choose (or appears unable to choose).

Why does that distinction matter? It matters because the members of the RBC were adamant in their discussions of what they were after in these applications at their October 2025 meeting. They wanted not only clarity of method, but a demonstration of what worked in the past, what did not and how a state party would mitigate any lingering issues from the past implementation in 2028. 

All is not lost for Iowa Democrats. FHQ finds it hard to imagine the state party not being invited to make a presentation to the RBC for inclusion of its caucuses in the 2028 early window. [More on why soon at FHQ Plus.] So they will have a chance clean up any perception that this is a muddled mess by focusing on what the party could do to enhance what went right with the vote-by-mail party-run primary from 2024.

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Related at FHQ Plus (subscription)...

Deadline day approaches for would-be early Democratic states for 2028 

Some thoughts from FHQ now that the deadline has drawn the attention of the media