Primary Election

Primary elections in Pennsylvania are held on the third Tuesday of May in most years. In presidential years, the primary election is held on the fourth Tuesday of April.

In a primary election, Democratic and Republican voters select the candidates they want to represent their parties during the November general election.

Pennsylvania has a closed primary system. This means that Republican voters can vote only for Republican candidates and Democratic voters can vote only for Democratic candidates. The candidates who receive the most votes go on to run in the general election.

While voting in a primary election for party nominees is limited to only voters registered as Democratic or Republican, all registered voters can vote in a primary election if the ballot includes any of the following:

• a constitutional amendment question,
• a ballot question, or
• a special election in their district.