The Committee of Seventy supports the election reform package – amended Senate Bill 421 – that was voted out of the State House Government Committee and promises several significant election upgrades for Pennsylvania voters.
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The controversy wrapped around the chosen system seems primed to continue, as does the leadership vacuum that has persisted throughout.
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The bipartisan Pennsylvania Redistricting Reform Commission released a final report today with recommendations to improve the process of creating legislative district boundaries. Governor Wolf signed an executive order last year creating the commission to explore ways Pennsylvania could curb gerrymandering and make redistricting fairer and nonpartisan.
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The Committee of Seventy applauds administration’s step to issue a bond to cover the long-term investment in safe, secure voting systems. Counties around the state have taken responsible steps over the past year to procure new voting machines with voter-verified paper trails. Such equipment is essential to protect the integrity of our elections, and our local governments deserve this financial support for doing their part.
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The State Senate approved with overwhelming bipartisan support today (42-8) a landmark bill that would allow 785,000 independent Pennsylvanians to vote in spring primary elections, a significant step forward in moving away from the Commonwealth’s closed primary system.
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Legislation that would allow 785,000 independent Pennsylvanians to vote in spring primary elections took another step forward today. Senate Bill 300, introduced by Senator Joe Scarnati earlier this year, was reported out of the Senate State Government Committee with bipartisan support.
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Calls for reforming Pennsylvania's primary system have continued to grow over the past year, with polls scheduled to open for another closed primary on Tuesday. A new statewide coalition, Open Primaries PA, launched last month to support legislation in the General Assembly that would allow the state’s nearly 800,000 independent voters to choose a party primary to vote in.
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A new statewide coalition -- Open Primaries PA -- launched today with the mission of opening Pennsylvania’s primary process to include independent voters across the Commonwealth.
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The Committee of Seventy released today a new platform – Philadelphia Resolution 1 – that highlights five areas where change is needed to build a stronger local democracy in the city.
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Philadelphia, PA (April 1, 2019) --- The Committee of Seventy (C70) announced today that it has negotiated rights to acquire the "Coffee Can of Destiny" (CCoD) from the Office of the Philadelphia City Commissioners and plans to donate it to a new Philadelphia Coffee Museum to be built on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
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The Committee of Seventy is encouraged by the decision made today by the Philadelphia City Commissioners because it ensures that city voters will be using a new and secure election system starting with the November 2019 election. But the Commissioners and other city officials will need to do much more in the next few months to help voters understand why the decision was made and how it will affect their voting experience.
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The Blue Ribbon Commission on Pennsylvania’s Election Security released its final report today, urging the replacement of vulnerable voting machines with systems using voter-marked paper ballots. This top-line recommendation was one of 11 issued by the independent and bipartisan commission of civic and government leaders, including cyber security and law enforcement professionals from around the Commonwealth.
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The last of five voting system expos hosted by the Pennsylvania Department of State will take place in Doylestown this Thursday, December 13. The Better Philadelphia Elections Coalition encourages local media, voting rights advocates and the general public to attend and learn about prospective voting systems that could be installed in their county. According to the Department, attendees will be welcome to observe voting machine demonstrations and ask questions of voting system vendors and state officials.
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The Committee of Seventy is joining the call made this week by the Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities for the City Controller to conduct a review of city land sales. Reporting by the Inquirer and Daily News confirm the continuation of City Council’s problematic role in land disposition, a longtime concern for Seventy.
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The Committee of Seventy applauds Governor Wolf for the Executive Order he issued today creating the Pennsylvania Redistricting Reform Commission. Furthermore, we are honored that the Governor asked our President and CEO, David Thornburgh to, chair this important group.
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