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Would more of us show up if Washington voted on Super Tuesday?

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KUOW Photo/Liz Jones

The Washington state Senate has approved a bill to move the presidential primary election to March from May.

Republican Secretary of State Kim Wyman requested the change. She says the earlier date would make the state more relevant in the national process of choosing presidential nominees. Super Tuesday, for example, was in March the last two presidential elections.

Now the Democratic-controlled House will consider the bill.

But it's already being opposed by the chair of the state's Democratic party, Tina Podlodowski, who calls the bill political theater.

Podlodowski: "It has nothing to do with having a better primary system in Washington state and getting people in Washington state better access to the ballot box."

Podlodowski says the goal should be getting more people to vote. She recommends including more races on the presidential primary than just president.

She did not say whether she knew if having a primary if the national spotlight would entice more people to vote.

Washington's Democratic Party ignores the results from the primary when picking a presidential nominee and uses a caucus system instead. Even so, more than three times as many Democrats still voted in the 2016 presidential primary compared to the caucuses.

The primary date is still scheduled for May 2020. The bill to change the date is in the hands of a state House committee chaired by Democratic Rep. Zack Hudgins.

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