Allegheny County Primary Election - League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh

HomePrimary Basics

Primary Election Basics
Information for Allegheny County Voters

What is a Primary?

The main purpose of Pennsylvania's Primary Election, held in April or May each year, is to select the Republican and Democratic candidates who will be on the ballot in the November General Election. Sometimes the primary also has ballot issues to vote on, such as tax increases or constitutional amendments. Although only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote in their party’s Primary, all registered voters can vote on ballot issues.

Why Vote? It's Just a Primary.

Many municipal elections are decided in the primary.

Primaries are critically important because they select the candidates who run in November. That selection affects everyone, not just voters registered with the two major parties.

In some races, the Primary result is the final result. Sometimes all candidates running for an office are members of the majority party in the district, and the primary winner has no opponent in November. This happens often in small, municipal races and in districts that lean strongly towards one party.

Primary Dates

Presidential vs. Non-Presidential Election Years

Pennsylvania Election Code sets the date for primary elections.

In a presidential election year, the date is the 4th Tuesday in April.
In all other years, the date is the 3rd Tuesday in May.
The PA General Assembly may pass legislation to move the date of the Primary. (In 2000, the date of the Primary was moved to April 4, and in 2020, the date was moved to June 2.)

Can You Vote in the Primary?

Closed Primary Rules

Yes, if you are registered to vote as a Democrat or Republican before May 5.

Pennsylvania has closed primaries. Voters can choose a party when they register to vote. Only voters who choose to register with the Democratic or Republican parties are able to vote for candidates in the primary election. Voters who registered with a "third-party" or no party cannot vote for candidates in a primary.

If you want to vote in the Primary but aren’t registered in either major party, you can re-register to vote in the party of your choice, and vote in the primary. Then, after the Primary, you can re-register without selecting a party affiliation to end your registration as a Democrat or Republican.

A chart showing the Pennsylvania voting rules for primarys. In PA, members of the two major parties have more voting power. The chart shows that third party or no-party voters cannot vote for candidates in the primary, but can vote for ballot questions in the primary.

You can update your party registration, name or address at vote.pa.gov.
May 5 is the deadline to update your registration in time for the May 20 Primary Election. Vote.PA.gov

Pennsylvania is one of a handful of states with a closed primary system that excludes independent and "third-party" voters. Yet well over 1 million Pennsylvania voters, nearly a third of total registered voters, are not affiliated with either major political party, and their number is growing. Each state’s laws define the way it runs its primaries, and the League of Women Voters has repeatedly supported proposed legislation in Harrisburg that would open Pennsylvania’s closed primary system to all registered voters.

Nonpartisan Ballots

In a few cases, all registered voters are eligible to vote on Primary Day.

Accordion Widget

All Registered Voters May Vote on Ballot Questions in the Primary

All registered voters may vote on ballot questions that appear on the primary ballot. This includes local ballot initiatives at the municipal or county level, and state-level questions added to the ballot by the PA General Assembly, including proposed amendments to the PA Constitution.

Voters who are not registered as Democrats or Republicans will receive a "Nonpartisan Ballot" that contains only the ballot questions (and/or special elections). No primary candidates will appear on the Nonpartisan Ballot.

Accordion Widget

All Registered Voters May Vote in Special Elections Scheduled on Primary Day

All registered voters may vote in a Special Election race that is scheduled on Primary Day. A special election occurs when an elected official resigns or dies in the middle of a term. Special Elections are sometimes scheduled on the same day as the Primary, and the candidates will appear on all primary ballots in their districts, including Democratic, Republican and nonpartisan ballots.

Candidates elected in a special election will begin serving their terms immediately after the election. They do not have to run again in November.

Accordion Widget

How Do I Know If There Will Be a Nonpartisan Ballot Available?

If you know there is a special election or ballot question in your precinct, there will be a non-partisan ballot available, but if you're not sure, use a tool to preview your ballot. Enter your identifying information to see if there will be a non-partisan ballot in your precinct. (These tools will be updated a few weeks before the election.)

How to Preview Your Ballot

Which Races Are on the Ballot in the 2025 Primary?

Municipal Elections

Voters will elect the mayors, town council members, sheriffs, and DAs, for their own local areas. There are over 130 municipalities in Allegheny County, and they will all be electing local officials in 2025.

County Elections

The Allegheny County Sheriff, and half of the County Council members are up for election in 2025.

School Boards

School Board positions will be open in all of Allegheny County's 40+ school districts. Half of the seats will be elected in each district. Learn more about school boards on our Public Education in PA page.

Judicial Elections

Pennsylvania voters will be electing judges at all levels, including local Magisterial District courts, county-wide Common Pleas courts, and the statewide Commonwealth, Superior and Supreme Courts. Learn about these positions on our PA Courts page.

Local Government Information

Candidate Information

Judicial Candidates
Candidate Guide

How Do "Third Party" Candidates Get on the November Ballot?

Candidates of "third parties" cannot participate in the PA Primary. Their nomination process begins after the Primary, and they qualify for the General Election ballot by submitting nominating papers with a required number of voter signatures. These papers are due ten weeks after the Primary - usually in early August. This is very similar to the process that Democratic and Republican party candidates use to qualify for the Primary ballot.

How to Vote

Check your voter registration status at this link: Check Voter Registration

The status report will tell you

if your registration is active
your complete "political address," including your municipality, ward and precinct
the location of your polling place
whether you have applied for a mail-in ballot

If you have questions about registering, or voting in person or by mail, see our Voting Pages.

Voting Pages

Preview Your Ballot

Will this be on the test?

There will be over 2,000 different primary ballots in Allegheny County. While a few federal and statewide races get media attention, it can be more difficult to find information on "down ballot" races.

The candidates on your ballot will depend on your location, and your political party.

The League of Women Voter's Vote411 website will allow you to see all of your candidates, and their responses to our candidate survey (if they responded!)

The County's ballot preview will allow you to see exactly what your ballot will look like. You can use it to see the candidates who will appear on your ballot.

Enter your address to see which candidates will be on YOUR Ballot.

Candidate responses to our Voters' Guide survey will also be available at this site during election season.

Allegheny County Ballot Preview

Ballot images are available after ballots are printed, usually a few weeks before each election at this link:

2025 Link is not yet available.

The form asks you to enter your municipality, ward and precinct. If you're not sure, you can find all this information by checking your voter registration status:

Check Voter Registration

"Cross Filed" Candidates

In school board and some judicial races, candidates may file to run in both the Democratic and Republican parties. This is called "cross filing."

Cross filing allows primary voters a wider choice of candidates in these races, which are considered non-partisan. It also gives candidates an increased chance of appearing on the November ballot.

Candidates are required to complete all of the filing requirements for both parties, including circulating both sets of nominating petitions and paying both filing fees. They will then appear on both the Democratic and Republican primary ballots.

When will ballots be available? Has your polling place changed? How many voters have requested mail-in ballots? Will there be drop-boxes? ...

You can receive weekly email updates from the Allegheny County Elections Board during election seasons by subscribing here: Subscribe to "Allegheny Votes" Newsletter

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