On November 7, the Reform Party nominee for Allegheny County Council-at-large, David Tessitor, polled 8.3% of the vote. Allegheny County contains Pittsburgh and is Pennsylvania’s second-most populous county. Tessitor had both a Democratic and a Republican opponent. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had endorsed Tessitor shortly before the election.

Pennsylvania permits a party to be a recognized party in just a single county, even if it isn’t recognized statewide. County parties win recognition by polling 5% of the vote. Unfortunately, “political party” status in Pennsylvania is not what it is in other states. Pennsylvania says a “political party” is still not ballot-qualified, unless it has registration equal to 15% of the statewide total. Nevertheless, being recognized as a party carries some advantages. Such parties are listed on the voter registration form, and have more freedom to nominate non-members than unqualified parties do.