Campaign

Pennsylvania moves to push primary up five weeks starting in 2024

by Justine Coleman 01/29/20 06:13 PM ET

Pennsylvania is moving to become more relevant in the early primary conversation starting in 2024.

The Pennsylvania Senate passed a bill Wednesday to push up the date of the state’s presidential primary five weeks to occur during the third week in March, beginning in 2024. Current election laws require the primary to be held on the fourth Tuesday in April, which is April 28 this year.

The legislation is now headed to the state’s House of Representatives for approval. If passed, the primary would only be moved up during presidential election years.

The state now has one of the last Democratic primary contests of the cycle, even though Pennsylvania has the fifth-most pledged delegates in the Democratic presidential nomination promising, The Associated Press reported.

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State Sen. John Gordner (R) sponsored the bill, saying it would allow Pennsylvania to have more influence in the presidential primary process, without breaking Democratic National Committee or Republican National Committee rules, according to the AP.

“For many years, the selection of the Presidential nominee has already been determined by the time Pennsylvania voters have gotten the opportunity to cast their ballot,” Gordner said in a press release. “My bill will allow our citizens to play a much larger role in determining the outcome of these critical elections.”

Currently, Pennsylvania shares its primary election day with New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maryland and Delaware. The states with a primary on Pennsylvania’s desired day in March are Arizona, Florida, Ohio and Illinois.