'Top two' changes primary election ballgame

COMMENTARY
From Casey Gudel, manager of political affairs for the California Farm Bureau Federation:

The campaign advertisements and mail pieces are starting to hit, signaling the June primary election is right around the corner. By now, you have likely received your sample ballot or vote-by-mail ballot and may have noticed that things don't look quite the same.

The upcoming June 5 election marks the first time in California in which the "top-two," open primary is in place. Proposition 14, a measure supported by Farm Bureau and passed by voters in 2010, replaced the traditional ballot that listed candidates according to party with a new system that places every candidate on the primary ballot, regardless of party affiliation.

The two candidates who receive the most votes in the primary will advance to the general election.

Unlike local elections, even if one candidate earns 50 percent or more of the primary vote, that candidate will still face the second-place candidate in the general election.

Farm Bureau supports the "top-two," open primary as a way of changing the face of government at the state Capitol and in Washington, D.C. All too often, we see partisan bickering get in the way of making the decisions needed to jumpstart the economy and get our fiscal house in order. The new primary system allows voters to choose candidates who will best represent their district.

Read more in Ag Alert. (The photo is courtesy of CFBF.)