Pennsylvania is one step closer to pushing itself into the 2024 presidential primary spotlight after a state committee voted to move the primary earlier to March 19.
Current state law places the primary in the Keystone State on the fourth Tuesday in April, well after a large number of states hold primaries on Super Tuesday, the first Tuesday in March. However, the fourth Tuesday in April is April 23, the first day of Passover, a Jewish holiday.
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The State Government Committee voted unanimously on Wednesday to move the date up, a measure sponsored by Republican state Sen. Dave Argall. Argall said the two following Tuesdays, March 26 and April 2, are also on the table, but he prefers the earlier date.
"In my mind, the sooner, the better," Argall told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I was very pleased [with the vote]. It will give Pennsylvania voters a strong voice."
Moving up the primary could have significant effects in 2024. Pennsylvania is a key battleground state in the general election but is often an afterthought when it comes to the presidential primaries. By the time the fourth Tuesday in April rolls around, front-runners have mostly wrapped up their nominations.
Shifting the primary date could allow the Keystone State to become a key player in both the primary and the general election, particularly for Republicans looking to win as many battleground states as possible in 2024.
"There seems to be a genuine bipartisan desire to give Pennsylvania voters more of a say in a presidential primary," Argall said.
The deadline for signatures to get on the ballot would also be moved up for candidates, forcing them to travel to Pennsylvania and campaign earlier. Candidates typically begin circulating petitions 13 weeks before the primary, so a March 19 primary election would force candidates to start the signature-gathering period on Dec. 19.
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Pennsylvania has flipped between red and blue over the years. Former President Donald Trump narrowly won the state in 2016 by 0.72 points, but President Joe Biden came back to flip the state in favor of Democrats by 1.2 points in 2020.
In the 2022 midterm elections, the Pennsylvania Senate race was one of the last to be called. Now-Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) defeated Republican Mehmet Oz by 4.9 points, a key win for Democrats that helped them maintain control of the Senate.