The list of candidates that will appear on the ballot for governor and U.S. Senate in the upcoming May Primary Election has been finalized. The 2022 election cycle features open races for both positions. The deadline for candidates to file their petitions with the Pennsylvania Department of State was last week.
In the gubernatorial race, current state Attorney General Josh Shapiro will be the lone Democrat on the ballot. With no challenge in the upcoming Primary Election, Shapiro will face off against the chosen Republican candidate in the November General Election. Nine individuals are vying for the Republican nomination.
The open U.S. Senate seat has attracted a crowded field for both parties. Republican voters will have seven candidates to choose from, while there will be five Democratic candidates on the Primary ballot.
Pennsylvania’s entire Congressional delegation is also up for election this year. A stagnation in population growth led the Commonwealth to lose one of its Congressional seats, going from 18 to 17. The newly drawn districts will feature two open races in seats in the Pittsburgh region.
Additional information on the candidates that will appear on the ballot for Governor, Lt. Governor and U.S. Senate, as well as Pennsylvania’s 17 U.S. House seats can be found in this Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article and this NBC 10 article.
PCCJR will publish its Voter Guide prior to the primary election so you can study the differences between the Gubernatorial candidates on important civil justice issues. In the fall, we will include state legislative candidates running in open seats in our questionnaire distribution and will publish the voting records of incumbent legislators who are running for re-election.
While half of Pennsylvania’s state Senate and the entire House of Representatives are also up for election this year, the list of candidates is not yet finalized. This delay is a result of litigation tied to the reapportionment process and the finalization of the state legislative maps. Last Thursday, the state Supreme Court ordered that the final maps approved by the Legislative Reapportionment Commission be utilized for all upcoming elections. Individuals wishing to run for the state House or Senate have until March 28 to file their petitions.