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HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) \u2014 More than 1.5 million Pennsylvanians won\u2019t be able to vote on May 19 because of the state\u2019s closed primary elections.<\/p>\n
The state is an outlier, as 42 other states and D.C. have open primaries, which means voters don\u2019t need to affiliate with a political party ahead of the election to vote. Lawmakers have been pushing for reform since at least 1995, but so far none have successfully changed the law.<\/p>\n
Close<\/a><\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Watch for us in your inbox.<\/p>\n Subscribe Now<\/p>\n The issue has support from Democrats and Republicans. But now a group of independents has filed a lawsuit asking a Pennsylvania court to force them into the primaries.<\/p>\n John Jones, a former federal judge, cited the \u201cfree and fair elections\u201d in Pennsylvania\u2019s Constitution for grounds to open the state\u2019s primary elections.<\/p>\n \u201cEmphasis on the word fair,\u201d he said. Jones and political scientists argue too many elections are decided on primary day, rather than Election Day in November.<\/p>\n \u201cYou look statistically in elections from 2020 to 2025, in the state legislature, for example, only about 10% of those elections were actually really contested,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n