Pennsylvania held primaries on May 16. The two top Republican leaders of the State Senate, Senators Brightbill and Jubelirer (majority leader and president pro tempore) both were defeated for re-election. The Republican leadership of the Pennsylvania State Senate have been stalwart foes of ballot access reform. In 1997, Republican leaders in the Pennsylvania State Senate quadrupled the number of signatures needed for minor parties and independents, although that bill was vetoed. More recently, the Pennsylvania House has held hearings on ballot access reform, but the Senate has never shown any interest in improving the ballot access laws.
Excellent, but I wonder if the replacement candidates are just as bad regarding ballot access?
During his campaign, John Eichelberger, who defeated Senator Jubelirer yesterday, eagerly accepted the endorsement of Peg Luksik, a key leader in the Constitution Party and its former gubernatoral candidate. Eichelberger sought to portray himself as the true pro-life candidate and Luksik’s support certainly helped with that. Peg has been helpful in Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition efforts. If John wins in the fall, perhaps Peg can remind him of the importance of alternative parties in our political system.