All 29 states (as well as the District of Columbia) that have registration by party have now released fairly current registration data. The new data in all cases is as of September 2011, October 2011, November 2011, December 2011, or January 2012.

National totals show Democrats with 42.64% of the registered voters in those states, Republicans with 30.79%, independents 24.37%, and minor parties at 2.19%.

These percentages are very similar to the data from October and November 2010. Those figures showed: Democrats 42.98%, Republicans 30.58%, independents 24.27%, and minor parties at 2.17%.

On December 22, 2011, USA Today published a story that claimed that recent registration data shows that voters are “leaving the major parties in droves”, but that article did not provide any data. The report seems to be untrue. The February 1, 2012 printed Ballot Access News will include the registration by state for each party.

The January 31 Tacoma News-Tribune has this op-ed by John S. Mills, explaining that the Washington state top-two system has given voters greatly restricted choice in Washington state general elections. Mills focuses on the disappearance of minor party candidates from the November ballot.

Although his op-ed does not say so, minor party or independent candidates appeared on the November ballot in Washington state for Congress, or statewide office, or both, in all elections from statehood in 1890 through 2006. But when Washington switched to the top-two system, minor parties ceased appearing on the November ballot, except for President (top-two systems never apply to presidential elections), and except for a handful of legislative races in which only one major party member ran. Thanks to Will Baker for the link.

This story describes the hearing held on January 31 in Washington, D.C., in the case over whether the Texas legislature’s redistricting plan for U.S. House and state legislature violate the Voting Rights Act.