Every election matters, but in Kentucky, primary and off-year elections often matter the most. In many districts, the primary effectively decides who will hold office long before the general election ever arrives. Yet these are also the elections where turnout is often the lowest.
That should concern all of us.
When participation is low, election results can become skewed — not illegitimate, but unrepresentative of the broader public. A small percentage of highly motivated voters end up making decisions for entire communities while many working families, young voters, independents, and moderates stay home, convinced their vote does not matter.
In reality, low-turnout elections make individual votes matter more than ever.
Most Kentuckians are not living at the political extremes. They are raising families, running businesses, coaching ball teams, attending church, working long hours, and trying to build stable lives. They want safe communities, good schools, affordable healthcare, reliable infrastructure, and leaders focused more on solving problems than winning online arguments.
But when turnout is low — especially in primaries or off-year elections — the loudest voices often carry the greatest influence. Candidates become more focused on surviving primaries than building broad coalitions or tackling the issues that affect most people.
The consequences extend beyond election night. Low-turnout primaries can create legislative environments where pragmatic leaders feel politically trapped. Lawmakers who may personally support balanced or consensus-driven solutions often fear challenges from smaller but more ideologically intense voting blocs. Over time, compromise is treated as weakness, moderation becomes politically risky, and the practical middle ground begins to disappear.
That is unhealthy for governing and unhelpful for the public.
Off-year elections only magnify the problem. School boards, city commissions, fiscal courts, judges, and state legislators often have a more direct impact on daily life than national political debates, yet these races routinely draw the fewest voters.
If we want government to better reflect the temperament of the broader public, then participation must improve. That includes serious conversations about reforms like open primaries.
Kentucky has a growing number of independent voters, yet many are excluded from the very elections that often determine final outcomes. Allowing independents to participate in primaries could encourage wider turnout, reduce the influence of narrow factions, and reward candidates who appeal to a wider cross-section of voters rather than only the most politically intense groups.
Open primaries would not solve every problem, nor would they eliminate disagreement. But they could help create a healthier political culture — one where coalition building, pragmatism, and problem solving are not treated as liabilities.
Democracy works best when participation is broad, not narrow.
The ultimate solution is not complicated, even if the challenge is cultural: vote. Vote in primaries. Vote in off-year elections. Encourage others to participate. Democracy works best when more voices are heard and government reflects the broader public, not just the loudest corners of it.
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Written by Rep. Erika Hancock, who represents Kentucky’s 57th House District in Franklin County.
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