If you are legally eligible to be a candidate you are free to file for said office as a rep of any major party, as long as you promise to vote for a majority of that party’s candidates in the election and pay a fee (waived with signatures). We have three major party, DFL, GOP and IND. The Greens were a major party but lost it a few years back.

When we register to vote, we do not declare a party ID and our primaries are thus, “open”.

Minor parties basically petition individually as an Independent and can select a brief minor party name or appear as “Independent”.

I have often wondered if their it is common for some one to file for in a major party primary (IND) just to hurt the party itself or another party (DFL)?