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Pretzelbasket t1_it814io wrote

What would the steps be to eliminate the closed primary system in PA? It feels as though the current system awards the most radical parts of "base" affiliated voters, drives down primary turnout, and overall negatively impacts the quality of candidates in PA.

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Second question: If Mastriano were to win the Gov. mansion and enact his universal purge and reenrollment of all PA voters, what actions would the League of Women Voters take to counter that clearly unconstitutional aim?

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LWVPA OP t1_it82ocv wrote

Question #1: We love talking about the need to eliminate closed primaries! Right now, it’s not a system that works for everyone. According to the Pennsylvania Department of State, nearly 1.1 million voters are registered as unaffiliated with a political party or Independent. This segment of the state’s electorate has been increasing for years - and is now the fastest growing segment of voters - consistent with a national trend of voters identifying as independents. But in Pennsylvania, these voters are prevented from participating in the local, state and federal primaries that are likely the most important elections in their communities.

New legislation (Senate Bill 690) introduced in the PA General Assembly would allow the 1.1 million independent and unaffiliated voters shut out of primary elections in Pennsylvania to choose a Democratic or Republican ballot. We support this legislation and urge members of both parties to sign on.

We are part of a coalition working towards a solution, and you can join! Learn more at ballotpa.org.

Question #2: Regardless of who wins the Governorship, we are going to be vigilant in our policy advocacy – specifically to make sure that best practices are followed for voter role maintenance.

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kormer t1_it8dscx wrote

> Question #2: Regardless of who wins the Governorship, we are going to be vigilant in our policy advocacy – specifically to make sure that best practices are followed for voter role maintenance.

Some analysis comparing voter roll data with postal change of address data has suggested that at least nationwide, a rather large number of voters no longer live at their registered address.

Are there any specific best practices that could be implemented in Pennsylvania to address this issue?

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