PRINTER'S NO. 2425
No. 1918 Session of 1997
INTRODUCED BY PLATTS, M. COHEN, PESCI, TIGUE, STEELMAN, KREBS,
MASLAND, MANDERINO, LEVDANSKY, BUNT, BELFANTI, JOSEPHS,
MILLER AND STURLA, OCTOBER 14, 1997
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, OCTOBER 14, 1997
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
2 "An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
3 special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
4 primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
5 and defining membership of county boards of elections;
6 imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
7 courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
8 imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
9 revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
10 repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
11 elections," further providing for the definition of political
12 parties and political bodies, for candidates to be nominated
13 and party officers to be elected at primaries, for
14 nominations by minor political parties and for nominations by
15 political bodies.
16 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
17 (1) That the Commonwealth's electoral laws hinder the
18 entry into the electoral process of independent candidates,
19 thereby limiting the electoral choices available to voters of
20 this Commonwealth.
21 (2) That the political system of the Commonwealth should
22 be electorally inclusive in order to promote the broadest
23 range of issue discussion and candidate selection.
24 (3) That enhanced ballot access for all candidates will
1 ensure a more democratic election process.
2 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
3 hereby enacts as follows:
4 Section 801(a) and (b) of the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333,
5 No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code, amended July
6 28, 1941 (P.L.526, No.213) and December 22, 1971 (P.L.613,
7 No.165), are amended to read:
8 Section 801. Definition of Political Parties and Political
9 Bodies.--
10 (a) (1) Any party or political body, one of whose
11 candidates at any of the [general election] prior three November
12 elections next preceding the primary polled in each of at least
13 ten counties of the State not less than [two] one per centum of
14 the largest entire vote cast in each of said counties for any
15 elected candidate, and polled a total vote in the State equal to
16 at least [two] one per centum of the largest entire vote cast in
17 the State for any elected candidate, is hereby declared to be a
18 political party within the State, and shall nominate all its
19 candidates for any of the offices provided for in this act, and
20 shall elect its delegates and alternate delegates to the
21 National convention as party rules provide at primaries held in
22 accordance with this act, except as otherwise provided in this
23 act. State committee members, and also such party officers,
24 including members of the National committee, as its rules
25 provide, shall be elected by a vote of the party electors, in
26 accordance with the provisions of this act and party rules.
27 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause (1), any party
28 or political body, one of whose candidates at any of the prior
29 three November elections next preceding the primary polled in
30 each of at least ten counties of the State not less one per
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1 centum of the largest entire vote cast in each of the ten
2 counties for any elected candidate, and polled a total vote in
3 the State equal to at least one per centum of the largest entire
4 vote cast in the State for any elected candidate, but whose
5 State-wide registration is less than fifteen per centum of the
6 combined State-wide registration for all State-wide political
7 parties as of the close of the registration period immediately
8 preceding the most recent November election, is hereby declared
9 to be a political party within the State. It shall nominate only
10 its candidates for the offices of United States Senator,
11 Representative in Congress and for all other elective public
12 offices within this State to be filled by the vote of the
13 electors of the State at large, and shall elect its delegates
14 and alternate delegates to the national convention as party
15 rules provide at primaries held in accordance with the
16 provisions of this act, except as otherwise provided in this
17 act.
18 (b) Any party or political body, one of whose candidates at
19 [either the general or municipal election] any of the prior
20 three November elections preceding the primary polled at least
21 [five] one per centum of the largest entire vote cast for any
22 elected candidate in any county, is hereby declared to be a
23 political party within said county; and shall nominate all its
24 candidates for office in such county and in all political
25 districts within said county, or of which said county forms a
26 part, and shall elect such party officers as its rules provide
27 shall be elected therein, by a vote of the party electors, in
28 accordance with the provisions of this act.
29 * * *
30 Section 2. Section 902 of the act, amended May 23, 1949
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1 (P.L.1656, No.504), is amended to read:
2 Section 902. Candidates to Be Nominated and Party Officers
3 to Be Elected at Primaries.--(a) All candidates of political
4 parties, as defined in section 801 (a)(1) of this act, for the
5 offices of United States Senator, Representative in Congress and
6 for all other elective public offices within this State, except
7 that of presidential electors, shall be nominated, and party
8 delegates and alternate delegates, committeemen and officers
9 who, under the provisions of Article VIII of this act or under
10 the party rules, are required to be elected by the party
11 electors, shall be elected at primaries held in accordance with
12 the provisions of this act, except as otherwise provided in this
13 act.
14 (b) (1) All candidates of political parties, as defined in
15 section 801(a)(2) of this act, for the offices of United States
16 Senator, Representative in Congress and for all other elective
17 public offices within this State to be filled by the vote of the
18 electors of the State at large, except that of the presidential
19 electors, shall be nominated, and party delegates and alternate
20 delegates, committeemen and officers who, under the provisions
21 of Article VIII of this act or under the party rules are
22 required to be elected by the party electors, shall be elected
23 at primaries held in accordance with the provisions of this act,
24 except as otherwise provided in this act.
25 (2) All candidates of political parties, as defined in
26 section 801(a)(2) of this act, for all other elective public
27 offices within this State, except that of the presidential
28 electors, shall be nominated in the same manner as minor
29 political party candidates pursuant to section 912.2 of this
30 act.
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1 (c) In the years when candidates for the office of President
2 of the United States are to be nominated, every registered and
3 enrolled member of a political party, as defined in section
4 801(a)(1) and (2), shall have the opportunity at the Spring
5 primary in such years to vote his preference for one person to
6 be the candidate of his political party for President.
7 Section 3. Section 912.2(a) and (b) of the act, added
8 February 19, 1986 (P.L.29, No.11), are amended to read:
9 Section 912.2. Nominations by Minor Political Parties.--(a)
10 Notwithstanding any other provision in this act to the contrary,
11 minor political parties shall nominate all of their candidates
12 for the offices to be filled at the ensuing November election
13 pursuant to section 903 in accordance with the requirements of
14 section 951, other than subsection (e)(6) and (7) thereof, and
15 section 954, and shall obtain the required signatures during the
16 same time frame available to political bodies. Minor political
17 parties shall be subject to the provisions of this act
18 applicable to political parties with respect to special
19 elections, voter registration forms, substituted nominations and
20 all other purposes except as otherwise expressly provided in
21 this section. "Minor political party" shall mean a political
22 party as defined in section 801(a) or (b) whose State-wide
23 registration is less than [fifteen] one per centum of the
24 combined State-wide registration for all State-wide political
25 parties as of the close of the registration period immediately
26 preceding the most recent November election[.] and none of whose
27 candidates at any of the prior three November elections next
28 preceding the primary polled in each of at least ten counties of
29 the State not less than one per centum of the largest entire
30 vote cast in each of the ten counties for any elected candidate,
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1 and polled a total vote in the State equal to at least one per
2 centum of the largest entire vote cast in the State for any
3 elected candidate. The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall
4 prescribe forms or, if there is insufficient time, make
5 appropriate conforming changes in existing forms to carry out
6 the purposes of this section.
7 (b) All nomination papers circulated and filed pursuant to
8 this section shall specify--(1) the name or appellation of the
9 political party or minor political party which the candidates
10 nominated thereby represent and, in the case of electors for
11 President and Vice President of the United States, the names of
12 the candidates for President and Vice President of such minor
13 political party; (2) the name of each candidate nominated
14 therein, his profession, business or occupation, if any, and his
15 place of residence with street and number, if any; and (3) the
16 office for which such candidate is nominated. No words shall be
17 used in any nomination paper to designate the name or
18 appellation of the minor political party represented by the
19 candidate's name in such nomination paper which are identical
20 with or deceptively similar to the words used for a like purpose
21 by any minor political party which has already filed nomination
22 papers for the same office. Any petition to set aside a
23 nomination paper on account of the name or appellation used
24 therein, or involving the right of the signers thereof to use
25 such name or appellation, or on any other account, shall be
26 decided as in the case of other petitions to set aside
27 nomination papers, in the manner provided by this article.
28 * * *
29 Section 4. Section 951(b) of the act, amended December 22,
30 1971 (P.L.613, No.165), is amended to read:
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1 Section 951. Nominations by Political Bodies.--* * *
2 (b) Where the nomination is for any office to be filled by
3 the electors of the State at large, the number of qualified
4 electors of the State signing such nomination paper shall be at
5 least equal to [two per centum of the largest entire vote cast
6 for any elected candidate in the State at large] one-tenth of
7 one per centum of the total ballots cast in the State at the
8 last preceding election at which State-wide candidates were
9 voted for[.] and shall be distributed so that one hundred (100)
10 signatures of electors are obtained in at least ten different
11 counties of the State. The total number of signatures necessary
12 shall be not less than the number of signers required for
13 nomination petitions for party candidates for the same office.
14 In the case of all other nominations, the number of qualified
15 electors of the electoral district signing such nomination
16 papers shall be at least equal to [two per centum of the largest
17 entire vote cast for any officer] one-half of one per centum of
18 the total ballots cast in the electoral district in the
19 preceding district-wide election for which nomination papers are
20 to be filed, except a judge of a court of record, [elected at
21 the last preceding election in said electoral district for which
22 said nomination papers are to be filed,] and shall be not less
23 than the number of signers required for nomination petitions for
24 party candidates for the same office. In cases where a new
25 electoral district shall have been created, the number of
26 qualified electors signing such nomination papers, for
27 candidates to be elected at the first election held after the
28 creation of such district, shall be at least equal to [two per
29 centum of the largest vote cast in the several election
30 districts, which are included in the district newly created, for
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1 any officer elected in the last preceding election.] one-quarter
2 of one per centum of the combined district-wide registration for
3 all district-wide political parties as of the date of the
4 official existence of the new district, and shall not be less
5 than the number of signers required for nomination petitions for
6 party candidates for the same office.
7 * * *
8 Section 5. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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