By a vote of 7-2 last week, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Washington’s wide open, Top-Two Primary. The decision follows years of court battles over the primary and the rights of voters to choose any candidate on the ballot. In a Top-Two Primary, voters do not have to declare any party affiliation, and can vote for any candidate, regardless of the candidate’s political party preference. In the recent decision, the Court rejected the political parties’ claims that this type of primary is unconstitutional.

In the decision, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that overturning the Top-Two would be an “extraordinary and precipitous nullification of the will of the people.” The Court concluded that the Top-Two Primary is not a nominating process, is not intended to pick each party’s nominee for the General Election. Rather, the purpose of a Top-Two Primary is to winnow the number of candidates to two, allowing voters to select the two most popular candidates to advance to the General Election. The two candidates with the greatest support advance to the General, regardless of party preference and regardless of whether they are a party’s nominee or preferred candidate.