An attempt to close the New Hampshire Republican presidential primary election to allow only Republican voters has failed, even though opening it to all voters may have violated the law.
Karen Testerman, who serves as chair of the Merrimack County Republican Committee, unsuccessfully ran for governor, and whose husband is New Hampshire State Representative David Testerman (R-Franklin), drafted a resolution that was adopted by the New Hampshire Republican Party a year ago demanding that New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan close the primaries. She also sued him last fall, but the lawsuit was dismissed on January 9, with the judge stating Testerman and the other plaintiffs did not have standing.
According to The New Hampshire Center for Public Interest Journalism (NHCPIJ), Scanlan said he couldn’t close the primary until he received a letter from the New Hampshire Republican Party (NHGOP) chair instructing him to do so, citing RSA 659:14-2 in Special Provisions for State and Presidential Primary Elections.
“The party chair is required to write a letter to the Secretary of State to inform him or her of any change in party rules that would determine who can participate in a party primary and that letter has to be delivered before the filing period for office opens up,” he said last October. Scanlan ignored the resolution passed by the NHGOP, which was provided to him by other Republican officials.
Read the rest of the article at The New Hampshire Star