The LuLac Edition #5, 016, November 1st, 2023

 

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

Our “Write On Wednesday logo.

This week we share the Citizens’ Voice editorial board’s thoughts on moving up the Presidential primary. That action would make Pennsylvania more of a player in Presidential politics.

RESCHEDULE PRIMARY TO MAKE PENNSYLVANIA A PRESIDENTIAL PLAYER

The debate in the General Assembly over rescheduling next year’s primary opens an opportunity for a wider discussion about calendar changes that would give Pennsylvania voters greater weight in presidential primaries.

The 1937 state Election Code schedules primaries in presidential election years on the fourth Tuesday in April, later than all but 11 states and often well after candidates have amassed enough delegates to ensure nomination.

 The state Senate has already voted to move next year’s presidential primary from April 23 to March 19 to avoid a conflict with Passover. The House is considering two bills, one scheduling the primary on March 19 and the other on April 2.

Some House Republicans oppose both bills, noting the latter date’s proximity to Easter Sunday, which falls on March 31 in 2024, and anticipated problems county election bureaus might have in organizing a primary as early as March 19.

Whatever date is ultimately chosen for 2024, the General Assembly should seriously consider amending the Election Code to make Pennsylvania a bigger player in presidential primaries. Because of the relatively late primary prescribed by the code, voters in the fifth-largest state in the nation rarely play a meaningful role in choosing the major parties’ nominees for president. The last truly competitive presidential primary in the Commonwealth was held in 2008, when Hillary Clinton defeated eventual nominee Barack Obama.