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RALEIGH — Elected Republican leaders, state party officials and activists are debating a proposal that would close the party’s primaries to all but registered members of the GOP.

Currently, unaffiliated voters may choose whether to vote in the Republican or Democratic primaries or to vote in neither. The Republican executive committee is expected to consider a change to the party’s policy Saturday.

Proponents of the change say open primaries have diluted the Republican brand, yielding candidates who do not always cleave to the party’s conservative ideals.

“I don’t want our party’s nominees to be watered down by someone who is outside the party. I want to give folks in the general election a solid conservative candidate,” said Bill Wright , chairman of the Guilford County Republican Party. “If we’re going to stand for something, then let’s stand for something.”

Republicans have had opened primaries in North Carolina since 1987 , according to the State Board of Elections. Democrats have opened their primaries since 1995 .

The notion of closing the party primaries has been hotly debated since it was first introduced this summer, said Wright and others on the state executive committee, a group made up of more than 600  Republican public officeholders and party functionaries.

“It makes no sense whatsoever,” said Wayne Sexton , chairman of the Rockingham County Republican Party. “It stands to hurt us. ... How can we shut them out of the primary but then ask for their votes in the general election?”

Unaffiliated voters make up 22.6  percent of the state’s

 6.1 million registered voters. And although Democrats have a statewide edge in voter registration, neither party lays claim to a majority of registered voters. That means winning over unaffiliated voters is key to winning many elections.

Sexton and others like him said the risk of pushing that key voting block away is not worth what might be gained by closing the primaries.

The proposal was put forward by the party’s 3rd Congressional District organization.

“It’s not intended to split anything up or disenfranchise anybody,” said Ann Sullivan , a member of the state executive committee from the 3rd District. “We came up with a resolution so we could identify who the Republicans were and get back to our conservative roots.”

Sullivan said grass-roots Republican activists want reassurance that the candidates who represent the party share their ideals.

Bob Pruett , who leads a group made up of the state’s 100 county party chairmen, said the proposal has come in part as a reaction to the 2008 election.

“A lot of Republicans, quite frankly, resented John McCain  being the nominee,” Pruett said of the senator from Arizona who ran for president last year. But as reflected by the differences between Wright and Sexton,

Pruett said there is a great deal of disagreement about whether closing the primary would help or hurt the party.

“I’ve never had any problem with independents voting in primaries,” said Rep. Howard Coble , a Greensboro Republican.

He said now was a good time to welcome unaffiliated voters into the Republican ranks.

“There seem to be more independents leaning our way than leaning the Democrats’ way,” Coble said. “I’d be inclined to think it’s in the category of 'it’s not broke so don’t fix it.’”

Sen. Phil Berger , an Eden Republican and his party’s leader in the state Senate, said he did not favor closing the primaries, either.

“The more people we can attract to a Republican primary to vote, the better for the party and the better for the party’s candidates,” Berger said.

State Democrats do not have similar proposals to close their primaries pending, according to a spokeswoman.

Contact Mark Binker at (919) 832-5549 or mark.binker@news-record.com