Arkansas, North Carolina, and Texas have their statewide primaries on March 3, kicking off the 2026 primary season.

Generally, political parties use primary elections to determine their nominees in advance of a general election. In some cases, however, political parties can — or must — nominate candidates for the general election without conducting a primary.

In Indiana, Michigan, and South Dakota, state law requires parties to nominate candidates for certain statewide offices, such as lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and attorney general, at a state party convention. 

The following are the state party convention dates in Indiana, Michigan, and South Dakota, as well as the offices up for nomination at each convention:

• Indiana (lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, state auditor, and attorney general): 
• Democratic convention: June 6, 2026, in Indianapolis 
• Republican convention: June 19-20, 2026, in Fort Wayne 
• Michigan (lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, Supreme Court, the boards of Michigan State University, Wayne State University, the University of Michigan, and the state Board of Education): 
• Democratic convention: April 19, 2026, in Detroit
• Republican convention: March 28, 2026, in an unknown location
• South Dakota (lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, state auditor, state treasurer, commissioner of school and public lands, and public utilities commissioner):
• Democratic convention: June 6, 2026 in Sioux Falls
• Republican convention: June 27, 2026, in Rapid City

In Alabama, South Carolina, and Virginia, major political parties may nominate candidates for any statewide office without holding a primary. In Alabama, the party must provide advance notice to the state that it will be foregoing a primary election, while in South Carolina, a party must submit the question of nominating candidates via convention to voters. Neither major party has taken these steps for 2026.

In Virginia, the situation is a bit different. Under state law, party authorities "have the right to determine the method by which a party nomination ... shall be made." Before 2024, some parties nominated candidates for statewide or congressional elections at a caucus or convention.

However, effective January 2024, the law states that a method of nomination "shall not be selected if such method will have the practical effect of excluding participation in the nominating process by qualified voters who are otherwise eligible to participate" but cannot attend meetings due to being active duty military, temporarily living outside of the U.S., being a student, having a disability, or experiencing a contagious disease. 

According to Virginia Mercury's Markus Schmidt, "The law effectively forces parties to nominate candidates through state-run primary elections rather than their own party-run contests." The 2024 changes do not apply to special elections.

In 44 states, candidates file paperwork with state or party officials to qualify for the primary election. They also typically must pay a fee, submit a certain number of signatures from eligible voters, or both.

In six states, however, political parties have a process where state or local political parties can directly nominate candidates for the primary ballot. That means the nominee does not need to go through a separate process in order to qualify for the ballot. In all six of those states, candidates can also qualify for the ballot via another means, such as submitting petition signatures.

In Colorado, for instance, candidates who receive at least 30% of the vote from state party delegates at a party assembly or who finish in the top two of voting on the second ballot will qualify for the primary election.

Parties in Utah also use conventions to select nominees for statewide office, though candidates can also gather petition signatures to qualify for the ballot. If a candidate receives sufficient support from delegates at the party nominating convention, and there are no candidates who filed via petition, that candidate is declared the nominee and no primary is held. If multiple candidates are seeking a party’s nomination and no candidate receives sufficient support at the convention, the top two vote-getters advance to the primary.

In Connecticut and Rhode Island, parties can endorse candidates before the primary, and that endorsement is designated on the ballot. In Connecticut, party-endorsed candidates qualify automatically for the ballot. Candidates with an endorsement are placed first on the ballot, with an asterisk following their name. In Rhode Island, an endorsement does not automatically mean a candidate will qualify for the primary, but it does mean they are placed first on the ballot.

Read more here about states that allow parties to nominate candidates for the primary.