On June 10, Pennsylvania Representative Eugene DePasquale (D-York) introduced HB 1672. It provides that parties that hold primaries (i.e., those parties with registration of 15% or more) must let independent voters vote in their primaries. If the bill were to be signed into law, the only Pennsylvania voters would who not be able to vote in major party primaries would be members of minor parties. Under the bill, independents could choose which party primary to vote in. The bill has 9 co-sponsors.

Los Angeles elects its Mayor in the spring of the odd years that follow presidential election years. The Socialist Workers Party has run a candidate for Mayor in all Los Angeles elections, starting in 1945, except that it didn’t run in 1997.

At the March 3, 2009 election, the Socialist Workers Party again ran a candidate for Mayor. Also, the new Party for Socialism and Liberation also ran a candidate for Mayor. The two candidates, together, polled 2.01% of the total in a 10-candidate field. Although that may seem to be a small percentage, it is the first time that socialist candidates for Mayor of Los Angeles, together, have polled that much, since the 1930’s.

Socialist Workers Party percentages for Mayor of Los Angeles have been: 1945 .21%, 1949 .38%, 1953 .73%, 1957 1.38%, 1961 .47%, 1965 .07%, 1969 .05%, 1973 .35%, 1977 .19%, 1981 .23%, 1985 .16%, 1989 .41%, 1993 .11%, 1997 no candidate, 2001 .16%, 2005 .48%.

The 2009 results are .90% for James Harris, Socialist Workers candidate; and 1.11% for Carlos Alvarez, Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate. The 2009 election had 10 candidates, 3 of whom had Spanish surnames.

The Socialist Workers Party and the Party for Socialism and Liberation are the only parties with “socialist” , “communist”, or “workers” in their names, that have run candidates for Mayor of Los Angeles since before World War II.

On June 9, Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen signed SB 547, which expands membership on Tennessee Election Commission from 5 to 7 members. On the next day, two new Republican Commissioners were appointed, so that Republicans now have a majority, 4-3.

All this was necessary because the State Constitution says that the party which won the most seats in the last state house elections should have a majority on the State Election Commission. The 2008 election produced a Republican majority for the first time in Tennessee history (there had been ties in the past, but never a Republican majority).