4 referendums to appear on primary ballots in May; all registered voters eligible

All 8.8 million of Pennsylvania’s registered voters will be able to cast ballots on May 18, when four referendums will appear, including three that seek the change the state’s constitution.

The deadline to register to vote in the primary is May 3. Voters will have until 5 p.m. May 11 to request mail-in and absentee ballots.

Most Pennsylvania primary elections are for registered Democrats and Republicans to nominate candidates to appear in the November general election. In some years, ballot questions are presented, open to the state’s nearly 1.3 million voters registered with third parties or with no political affiliation.

This year’s ballot questions include two specific referendums that address how future state of emergencies will be handled in Pennsylvania. They come on the heels of Republican criticism of stay-at-home and business closure orders implemented by Gov. Tom Wolf during the coronavirus pandemic.

One question asks voters to amend the state constitution to limit all state of emergencies issued by a governor to 21 days. A second referendum seeks to give the state’s General Assembly authority to extend or terminate a governor’s initial order.

A third proposed amendment to the state constitution seeks to specifically prohibit restricting or denying a person’s equal rights on the grounds of race or ethnicity.

Voters also will be asked to authorize permission for paid municipal fire and medical rescue companies to apply for loans from a state program that currently provides funding only for volunteer fire and EMS agencies.

Also, four special elections will be conducted May 18, including races to fill the state House seat in the 59th District left vacant after the January death of state Rep. Mike Reese, R-Mt. Pleasant. The district includes parts of eastern Westmoreland County and a small portion of Somerset County.

Another special election will be held in parts of Armstrong, Butler and Indiana counties, where voters will elect a replacement for Rep. Jeff Pyle, R-Ford City, who resigned this year for health reasons.