Advertisement Many CA independent voters left out of presidential primary Party confusion leads to people not getting presidential ballots Share Shares Copy Link Copy

California’s primary voting process has excluded tens of thousands of independent voters from voting in the president primary so far -- and those numbers are expected to grow, according to information provided to KCRA 3 Wednesday by a leading political data firm.Exit polling of independent, vote-by-mail voters is showing that 40 percent wanted to vote for a Democratic presidential candidate, but only 15 percent requested a Democratic ballot, Political Data, Inc. Vice President Paul Mitchell said.“They just didn't have the Democratic candidates on their ballot and didn't know how to get them, get the right ballot or get their ballot replaced," Mitchell said.Those who did not request that ballot wound up with a ballot that had no presidential candidates listed, which is consistent with California election law. But, voter confusion over the ballot rules continues and is leaving many voters out of the presidential selection process during an election that has drawn record voter registration and rare enthusiasm."It's kind of a black eye for our election process for this to happen," Mitchell said.While California typically has an open primary, a presidential election here is the exception to that rule. To vote in the Republican presidential primary, California voters must be registered as Republican and that registration deadline was May 23.Voters who wish to remain independent, labeled ‘No Party Preference’ on a registration card, may vote for a Democratic presidential candidate but must request a Democratic ballot. The deadline to request that ballot was Tuesday. NPP voters can still request a Democratic ballot either by visiting their county’s voter registrar’s office, or by asking for it at their polling place on Election Day."I think our voting process could definitely be reformed to be more efficient," said Kalley Thompson, who was voting at the Sacramento County Elections Office Wednesday. “I think we have to do the best with what we can right now and that means turning out to vote.”The problems that some independent voters are having to vote for a presidential candidate comes at a time when voter registration in California is breathtakingly high. Of a total of about 17 million voters, 1.9 million have already voted, Mitchell said.Beyond frustration among voters over the ballot confusion, candidates are closely watching the trends as well. In what is expected to be a close race between Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, the impact of the ballots already cast and the confusion they’ve presented is not yet clear.Of the voters surveyed who said they wanted a Democratic ballot rather than an NPP ballot, 58 percent said they would have voted for Sanders and 37 percent said they would have voted for Clinton, Mitchell said.On Wednesday, a judge rejected a lawsuit by Sanders supporters who argued that rules for the state’s independent voters are unclear. The suit sought more time to register voters before the critical June 7 primary.