On January 30, fourteen Pennsylvania Representatives introduced HB 48, which says that write-in votes are void if they are cast for a candidate who was removed from the ballot because his or her petition was insufficient. The sponsors include 8 Democrats and 6 Republicans. The Democrats include Babette Josephs, chair of the committee that will hear the bill (the Committee on State Government).
The bill seems to contradict a 1905 decision of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Oughton v Black, 61 A 346. On page 348, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court said that the state constitutional provision that elections be “equal” would be violated if voters were not permitted to write-in anyone they please. The Court said, if write-ins were restricted, “the election (as to the voter who cast a write-in vote) would not be equal, for he would not be able to express his own individual will in his own way.”
Good God. Third parties haven’t been punished enough in Pennsylvania?
I don’t think this is directly in response to third-party write-in candidacies. Last year, one faction of the Philadelphia Democratic machine got another faction’s candidate for state representative (for an open seat) knocked off the primary ballot; the latter candidate then ran a write-in campaign and almost won. So this is probably the former faction’s bill.
Hopefully someone will challenge it on the basis of the PA Supreme Court’s decision. If it goes to court again I can’t see how they could overturn their past decision. (Without looking bad)
Babette Josephs, long considered one of the most progressive lawmakers in the Pennsylvania legislature, should be ashamed of herself. The next thing you know they’ll be making it a felony for a voter to attempt to cast a write-in vote for someone who was arbitrarily knocked off the ballot.
Pennsylvania state courts don’t seem to worry about looking bad. They’ve already announced that federal constitutional precedent doesn’t apply to them.