May 17th - Who's On My Ballot?
Topic: Pennsylvania Politics
Prior to March of 2020, I had no idea that there was an election every 6 months and that the local elections are just as important as the Presidential election that happens every 4 years… today I would argue that they’re even more important.
After everything I’ve learned over the past 2 years, this is my new slogan:
Education is key and the fix is local.
The next election coming up that you can participate in is taking place on May 17th. Please put that in your calendar!
May 17th, May 17th, May 17th!!
It is a primary election where WE THE PEOPLE get to select who goes on the ballot in the upcoming November general election. The main statewide races are as follows:
Governor
Lieutenant Governor
US Senate
US House
Pennsylvania State House
Pennsylvania State Senate
Some districts have a PA Senate race, but not all districts and some are electing committee positions for the State Committee and local precinct committee positions. Don’t get overwhelmed… I will do my best to explain all of this.
To get a sample of what your May 17th ballot will look like, visit this website:
First, let’s talk some basic civics and then I’ll give you a breakdown of the different positions to help you understand what you’re looking at.
In our Constitutional Republic, which IS NOT a democracy, although that word gets thrown around all the time, and the powers that be are banking on you not knowing the difference, we have 3 branches of government. They are separate branches designed with checks and balances in order to maintain a balance of power, but they were not intended to have equal power. If you do a deep dive into the constitution and the Federalist Papers, you will find that the legislative branch is supposed to have the most power because it is closest to the people.
The 3 branches of government are: executive, legislative, and judicial. It is helpful for me to think of this in 2 separate pieces… the federal government is one piece and the state government is the second piece. The federal government’s executive branch is made up of the President and his cabinet. The Legislative branch is Congress, made up of a US House and a US Senate. When I refer to positions on a ballot, US House and US Senate are federal level positions. In Pennsylvania, we have 18 US House seats and 2 US Senate seats. The US House is re-elected every 2 years while the US Senate seats are 6 year positions.
Our US Senate seat that is on the ballot is kind of a big deal because first of all, they will represent us at the federal level for the next 6 years, and if we end up with another stolen election in 2024, these will be the people who need to stand up and object to any fraudulent electors put forth by the state. Unfortunately, we do not have a strong candidate for the US Senate seat who is adamant about election integrity. None of them have signed Audit The Vote PA’s decertify petition. Shoot, Oz is on record saying he would’ve certified the 2020 election. Jeff Bartos is also on record saying there was no fraud in 2020 and the rest of them are pretty silent on this issue, which I think is unacceptable, but nevertheless, it’s what we’re left with.
Let’s get back to our civics lesson…
The states have a similar set up in terms of branches of government. The Governor and his cabinet make up the executive branch. In Pennsylvania the legislative branch is referred to as the General Assembly and is made up of state House Reps and State Senators. We have 203 House members and 50 Senators. Our House seats are up for re-election every 2 years, while our Senate seats are 4 year positions. The Senate seats rotate terms meaning not every Senate district is up for re-election every 2 years, but all House seats are.
The judicial branch is the courts. The federal government has one court system while the state has a separate court system. More about the court system in another article.
Remember, education is key and the fix is local, so in my view, getting good patriots elected to serve in our state House is the most vital piece to this puzzle as we fight to save the Republic. All the positions are important, but if I had to prioritize something, the state House takes priority… education is key and the fix is local. I can’t say that enough.
Another important point: Since May 17th is a primary election, you must be either a registered Democrat or a registered Republican in order to participate. The deadline to change your registration is May 2nd. Your ballot will have either all Democrats or all Republicans on it, depending on how you’re registered. I personally think this model stinks… talk about voter suppression. They apparently don’t care about your voice if you’re not registered as one of the 2 major parties… but more on that in another article.
What are State Committee and precinct committee positions?
These are party related positions. The Dems have one committee and the Republicans have another. The following is straight from the PA Democratic State Committee website. The Republican Committee functions the same way:
“The Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee (PADSC) is the governing body of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Founded in 1792, the PADSC is charged with steering the direction of your party and organizing for Democrats across the ballot!
PADSC members, who are elected to four year terms, meet in full three times each year. PADSC members elect party leadership, hold nominating conventions, pass and promote a party platform, and help lead organizing efforts all across the commonwealth.”
So what are the State Committee positions all about?
Every county has a certain number of State Committee seats depending on the size/population of the county. People who serve on the State Committee can help steer the party in a given direction and if we can fill it up with more patriots than swamp creatures, we can put a dent in the establishment moving forward. These positions are elected every 4 years. Most of the counties in the Commonwealth, but not all of them, are electing their State Committee people this year and you will have a chance to vote for them in the May 17th primary.
What are the precinct committee positions?
In each county, both parties have a local committee that meets somewhat regularly. We have found in Pennsylvania that some counties are more organized than others, but each county has local committee man and committee woman positions available and there are A LOT of openings. If you have not heard about the Precinct Project yet, please do more research here:
If you want to get involved locally, but don’t know where to start, I recommend to start searching for your local Republican committee based on what county you live in, find out where/when they meet, and attend a meeting. In some counties, if your area has an opening for a precinct committee person, it’s as simple as being appointed by the local chair or local board, but these positions are also on the ballot at various times. This is another way we can take over and steer the party to go in a more America First, conservative direction… by getting good patriots appointed and elected to these local positions.
To get a sample of what your May 17th ballot will look like, visit this website:
Please reach out to me anytime if you have basic questions about the different positions. Also consider taking one of Audit The Vote PA’s constitution classes. The next one we are offering starts May 12th, Thursday night at 8pm. It’s all via Zoom, 1 night/week for 6 weeks and only costs $10. Recordings are available for any classes you miss.
Constitution Class Registration
Education is key and the fix is local… seriously!! Get involved!!
As always, thank you for your support and I hope you found this article helpful.
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I became a Republican committee person in Chester County. In my area there are open positions and no one to fill them with. It would be great to have some more patriots!