African American

If you want to vote in the Democratic primaries, to have a say in who their nominee should be then join the party. It is free to do so.

When I registered to vote I asked the registrar about the independent option. She politely told me I could choose any party I wanted to, but if I chose independent I would not be allowed to vote in the primaries. That was important to me so I chose D.

If voting in the Democratic primary is important to you, choose the D party. When the GE rolls around you can vote for whomever you want.

I wonder how far left the D party would move if all the independents registered D to vote in the primaries.

If they think the are making a statement by registering I or punishing the D party for not being progressive enough for them, they are only hurting themselves. The primaries are where the candidates are selected and if they want more progressive candidates they position themselves to be able to vote for them. Again it is free.

If they want to register Independent, Green, or Libertarian vote in their primaries to select a nominee. Voting in the D primary is not a consolation prize.