Earlier Primary Election Date Proposed In PA: Latest Details

HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania's presidential primary could soon play a much more significant role in the national political process, as legislation has been formally introduced that would advance the primary by more than a month.

State legislators have been angling to raise Pennsylvania's profile in the primary process for years. The latest proposal would see the date changed from the fourth Tuesday of April to the third Tuesday of March.

"The lateness of Pennsylvania’s presidential primary diminishes its significance for voters of both the Democratic and Republican parties," State Rep. Keith J. Greiner (R-Lancaster) said in a statement. "Pennsylvania’s presidential primary should have a significant impact on the process of selecting presidential candidates, to reflect our standing as 'the Keystone State.'"

Greiner's bill comes just weeks after a pair of Philadelphia Democrats announced support for similar legislation.

As a swing state and the nation's fifth largest state, Pennsylvania has been one of the most critical political battlegrounds in the nation for the past several presidential and midterm election cycles. The current situation makes Pennsylvania "one of the last states in the nation to weigh in despite being a crucial swing state," Philadelphia Democratic State Reps. Malcolm Kenyatta and Jared Solomon said.

"Usually we're an afterthought in terms of presidential primaries," Christopher Borick, a political science professor and director of Muhlenberg College Institute of Public in Allentown, told Patch.

Pennsylvania, however, is not one of the 20 states whose Democratic Party representatives applied for an "early" primary date, or one of the very first pre-eminent slots in February. It's part of a shift underway among Democrats as they seek to make the early nominating process more demographically representative of their party. While the shakeup still needs to be approved by a formal vote in the coming weeks, the new primary schedule will see South Carolina, Georgia, and Michigan hold primaries first, with New Hampshire and Nevada to follow a week later. Iowa, which has long held the leadoff position, is no longer among that early grouping.

While the Keystone State will not be a part of the first wave during the 2024 primary, a primary in third week of March would likely put it in or around the cadre of "Super Tuesday" states that often swing the ultimate balance in tight races.

"This will increase Pennsylvania’s importance in future presidential primary elections, giving our residents increased national political weight in line with our state's size and importance," the Kenyatta and Solomon added.

Perhaps no election cycle better epitomized Pennsylvania's place in the national primary process than in 2020. Early Republican challenges to incumbent President Donald Trump had long since been resolved by the early June date. And the once bitterly contentious Democratic primary between eventual President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders had tilted toward Biden.