Partisan politics and the astute gamesters who pursue politics as a game have their work already done. They primaried the primaries, and the offices of trust and particularly those empowered with legislative responsibility have been manipulated by and for the self-seeking partisan in such a way that the independent voter had but little voice and now has but little choice.
1963, C. Vann Woodward, Tom Watson: Agrarian Rebel, page 370:
What could the Negro do? He had been disfranchised in nearly every state in the South except Georgia. There he had been "white primaried."
2013, Robert G Boatright, Getting Primaried: The Changing Politics of Congressional Primary Challenges, University of Michigan Press (→ISBN), page 35:
This decline in competition serves to highlight the number of instances of “primarying” in these years; that is, there were not more challenges to centrist representatives in these years than in prior elections, but the percentage of such challenges was higher. [...] Almost all of the instances of primarying in these years took place on the Republican side.
2018, President Bill Clinton, James Patterson, The President is Missing: The political thriller of the decade:
“I'm not afraid of Gordon primarying you,” says Carolyn. “I'm afraid of him thinking about primarying you.
2019, Lesli Richardson, Indiscretion:
The only way Elliot can lose on his own when he runs is if he mulches a kitten, or gets caught fucking a little boy or something. The Dems won't try to primary him.
