Primary Impact:

PA Independent Voters Poised to Decide 2024 General Election

Just as they did in 2020, registered Independents in Pennsylvania are set to decide the 2024 general election. 

The presidential race is a dead heat. And with a recent Susquehanna Polling & Research poll finding that 88 percent of PA Democrats and 93 percent of Republicans are backing their party’s candidate, it is Independents who will tip the balance. Similar dynamics are at work in state House and Senate races, where independent voters can determine who’s in the majority and who’s in the minority.

Independent voters are split right down the middle (44% to 43%), while also making up the largest share of still-undecided voters. Add in the fact that Pennsylvania is the top swing state in the country, and it becomes clear: winning among PA Independent voters means winning the election.

Unsurprisingly, that means that both Democrats and Republicans are rushing to court Independents. And for these voters, it’s an all-too-familiar scene: the same parties that have worked to keep Independents out of primary elections in the spring come knocking for their votes in the fall.

If the two major parties want to attract Independent voters, there’s one issue that unites them unlike any other: repealing closed primaries. More than 90 percent of Independent voters support an open primary system, a move also popular with 77 percent of all voters. And critically, 60 percent of Independents indicate that they are more likely to vote for a general election candidate who supports open primaries.

Lawmakers have a chance to act now! The House State Government Committee has approved two bipartisan measures – H.B. 976 by Rep. Marla Brown (R-Lawrence) and H.B. 979 by Rep. Jared Solomon (D-Philadelphia) – that would end closed primaries in Pennsylvania.  

Both bills are poised to move to the full House for consideration and are primed for a vote within the coming days. It’s time for action.