What is crossover voting?

Crossover voting refers specifically to the practice where members of one political party choose to vote for candidates from another party during a primary election. This action can affect the outcome of primaries by allowing voters to influence candidates from opposing parties, often to bolster a weaker candidate who may be easier to defeat in the general election. Crossover voting can serve strategic purposes, such as impacting candidate selection or demonstrating discontent with a party's choices.

In the context of the other options, voting independently of party affiliation involves making choices without being tied to a specific party's candidate slate. This differs from crossover voting as it does not require choosing candidates from another party. Voting only in general elections pertains to the timing and format of elections but does not directly relate to the concept of how party affiliation influences candidate choices. Voting exclusively within one’s registered party represents the opposite of crossover voting, as it indicates a commitment to one's party without seeking to influence the outcomes of other parties' primaries.