Why Don't Political Parties Like Voters?

For some reason, this year we're seeing some rather mean-spirited political maneuvering taking place. It's not just one party or the other, it's both. Just not in the same places. Of course gerrymandering is rampant, but then that happens every ten years when the party in control of a state legislature, and especially if the governor is of the same party, gets to redesign the state. But this year seems to be even more underhanded. Take for instance Virginia with the most difficult set of rules covering everything from getting on the ballet to voters being required to sign a pledge, in the primaries, to vote for their party's nominee in the general election. You heard that right. In Virginia, if you vote in the primaries, you will be required to pledge to support your party's nominee. I can't imagine that that is even legal. In other states they're trying to figure out how to keep certain groups and demographics from voting at all. How? By requiring unusual residency rules, voter photo IDs, which are for some folks, expensive and difficult to obtain. The claim here is to eliminate voter fraud. But they can't offer any proof there is any voter fraud. Then there are states like Pennsylvania, Texas and most other states where voting districts are mapped out by the ruling party. Did you know that in California, there's a congressional district along the coast where the district is cut into two sections that do not border one another? It's like being asked by an outsider how to get to another town and telling them you can't get there from here. You have to start somewhere else. I guess what both political parties want is for all citizens to just turn over the election process to them and stay out of it. Instead, I think citizens need to tell political parties to stay out of it. We've been doing it, voting, for enough years that we could do it without the help or hindrance of the political parties. What we should say is if you're a Democrat, you are not allowed to vote. If you're a Republican, you're not allowed to vote. But if you're a member of any other party, you're not allowed to vote either. Except New Years Eve party members. They can vote. But only if they disavow any other party affiliations.