Today is primary day and 3.5 million Flori

Monday, February 28, 2011

Support for DePasquale Pennsylvania Bill to Include Independents in Primary Vote

Joseph Deinlein, a writer for the Sunbury PA Daily Item, writes about a "glimmer of hope for the independent voters" in Of primary concern 
 As one who has been an independent since I registered to vote, I’ve always hated not being allowed to vote in the primary. Particularly in Pennsylvania, off-year municipal elections tend to get decided in May, not November, because often there is only one party that puts forth any candidates. It gets more complicated at the local level when there are multiple people running on both sides.

State Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-York, announced last week the introduction of a package of four bills designed to improve voter turnout and give more voters a voice on Election Day.

The first bill would allow voters registered as Independents to cast ballots in Pennsylvania primary elections.

"In an era where more and more voters are registering as Independents, we should not be denying those voters the chance to make their voices heard in a primary election," DePasquale said. "This bill would allow Independents to choose which party’s ballot they would like to vote on during the primary. Also, if those Independent voters would like to vote in the Democratic primary one year and the Republican primary the next, or vice versa, my legislation would give them that choice."

Read more about the independent movement in Pennsylvania at Independent Pennsylvanians

No comments: