By David Thornburgh

For more than three decades, Pennsylvania lawmakers have introduced and debated bills to give independent voters a voice in our primary elections.

The state Senate passed such a bill in 2019 by a vote of 42-8, with both the current president pro tem and Senate majority leader voting for the measure. But in the House, every effort has failed – until now.

On Sept. 29, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives changed history. It passed legislation to open primary elections to the Commonwealth’s 1.5 million independent voters.

House Bill 280 passed 115–88 with bipartisan support. Sixteen Republicans joined 99 Democrats in support. Passage in the House—particularly with such strong bipartisan support—is worth celebrating. But more important, it is an opportunity Pennsylvania cannot waste.

For generations, our election system has told independent voters that they can help pay for our primary elections, but cannot participate in them. Independent voters pay the same taxes as Democrats and Republicans. They serve in our military, own businesses, coach Little League teams, volunteer in their communities and send their children to public schools. But when primary election day arrives, they are told to sit it out.

In more than nine in 10 legislative districts, where one party holds a significant registration advantage, the primary can be the election that effectively determines who will represent those communities. Yet independent voters have no say in choosing those candidates.

That’s increasingly difficult to justify because Pennsylvania’s electorate has changed. More voters – now one in six – are choosing not to identify with either major political party. For the last few decades, the independent voter segment has grown faster than either Republican or Democratic registered voters.

It’s about time our election system recognizes that change. We’re not living in 1937 anymore, the year the state election code was enacted.

House Bill 280 offers a measured way forward. It would allow an independent voter to choose either a Democratic or a Republican primary ballot for candidates seeking public office. The choice would apply only to that election. If an independent voter selects a Republican ballot in one primary, they could select a Democratic ballot in another.

Just as importantly, political parties would continue to maintain control over their internal affairs. Independent voters would not participate in elections for party committee positions, convention delegates or other internal party offices. This is not about weakening political parties. It is about giving more Pennsylvania voters a meaningful voice in publicly funded elections that help determine who will represent all of us.

Last month’s House vote demonstrated something we don’t see often enough in Harrisburg: Democrats and Republicans coming together to change a system because they believe it will strengthen voter participation.

All of the 115 House members deserve tremendous credit for championing the legislation, particularly those 16 Republicans who crossed the aisle to help make this historic vote possible.

We thank Rep. Tom Mehaffie, R-106, for standing on the right side of history and voting yes. Now we’re asking the Senate to continue the fight and move this legislation onto the governor’s desk.

For years, bipartisan leaders in the Pennsylvania Senate have helped carry this cause. SB 400, the current bill before the Senate, has eight Democratic and six Republican sponsors. Their persistence matters because major reforms don’t happen overnight. They happen because people keep making the case until an idea once considered unlikely becomes possible.

That is where Pennsylvania finds itself today.

The coalition behind open primaries is unusually broad. It includes independent voters, veterans, young Pennsylvanians, business and civic leaders, and public officials from both political parties.

They may disagree about plenty of issues, but they share a basic principle that more Pennsylvanians should have a meaningful opportunity to participate in choosing the candidates who seek to represent them.

Now the question moves to the Senate.

House Bill 280 must still clear that chamber and be signed by the governor – who has signaled his interest in signing the bill – before it can become law. Senators should give the proposal the thoughtful consideration that a significant election reform deserves. According to the National Council on State Legislatures, Pennsylvania is one of only eight states in the nation that do not allow independent voters to participate in the primary system.

But after decades of debate, Pennsylvania is closer than it has ever been to opening its primaries. The House has demonstrated that bipartisan agreement is possible. The Senate can do the same, just as it did seven years ago.

Lawmakers in both chambers, from both parties, have brought Pennsylvania to this point. Their willingness to challenge the status quo has already made history.

Now the Senate has the opportunity to accomplish something even more significant. It can step up and finish the job. Independent voters have waited long enough.

David Thornburgh is chair of Ballot PA Action, which advocates for opening Pennsylvania’s primary elections to independent voters.