Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Selection Amendment (2024)
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| Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Selection Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 5, 2024 | |
| Topic State executive official measures | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
The Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Selection Amendment was not on the ballot in Pennsylvania as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in 2024.
Overview[edit]
In Pennsylvania, a political party's candidates for governor and lieutenant governor are elected on a joint ticket at the general election. As of 2022, candidates for governor and lieutenant governor run in separate primaries for their party's nomination and then form a joint ticket.
The ballot measure would have allowed a political party's candidate for governor to select a candidate for lieutenant governor for the joint gubernatorial ticket. The ballot measure would have provided that political parties may approve or reject their gubernatorial candidate's pick for lieutenant governor.[1]
Text of measure[edit]
Constitutional changes[edit]
- See also: Article IV, Pennsylvania Constitution
The ballot measure would amend Section 4 of Article IV of the Pennsylvania Constitution. The following underlined text would be added and struck-through text would be deleted:[1]
A Lieutenant Governor shall be chosen jointly with the Governor by the casting by each voter of a single vote applicable to both offices, for the same term, and subject to the same provisions as the Governor; he. Each candidate for Governor, having been nominated under the laws of this Commonwealth, shall, subject to the approval of the political party or political body, if any, nominating such candidate, select a candidate for Lieutenant Governor within such time before the gubernatorial general election as the General Assembly shall prescribe by law. A person may not seek election to both offices simultaneously. The Lieutenant Governor shall be President of the Senate. As such, he the Lieutenant Governor may vote in case of a tie on any question except the final passage of a bill or joint resolution, the adoption of a conference report or the concurrence in amendments made by the House of Representatives.[2]
Background[edit]
Lieutenant governor selection processes[edit]
In 27 states, the lieutenant governor is selected on a ticket with the governor, meaning that lieutenant gubernatorial candidates serve as running mates to gubernatorial candidates, with the winning gubernatorial candidate's running mate becoming lieutenant governor. In seven of these states, there are separate primaries for governor and lieutenant governor, with the winning candidate in each primary appearing on the general election ticket. In the remaining 20 states, gubernatorial candidates may pick their own running mates in a similar fashion to presidential candidates. In 17 states, the lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor. In Tennessee and West Virginia, the title of lieutenant governor is given to the president of the state Senate.[3]
- Lt. gov. nominated in separate primary and elected in separate general election (17): Alabama, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington
- Lt. gov. nominated in separate primary but runs on a single ticket with gubernatorial nominee in general election (7): Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin
- Lt. gov. chosen by gubernatorial candidate before primary and runs on a single ticket with gubernatorial candidate in both the primary and general election (9): Alaska, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah
- Lt. gov. chosen by gubernatorial nominee after primary and runs on a single ticket with gubernatorial nominee in the general election (11): Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, South Carolina, South Dakota
- Lt. gov. is a member of the legislature (2): Tennessee, West Virginia
- Lt. gov. office does not exist in state (4): Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Wyoming
Path to the ballot[edit]
Amending the Pennsylvania Constitution[edit]
- See also: Amending the Pennsylvania Constitution
In Pennsylvania, a majority vote is required in two successive sessions of the Pennsylvania General Assembly to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot.
2021-2022 legislative session[edit]
Introduction of SB 106[edit]
Senate Bill 106 (SB 106), a joint resolution, was introduced into the Pennsylvania General Assembly in January 2021. SB 106 contained a single constitutional amendment, which was related to the process for selecting lieutenant governor candidates. On April 27, 2021, the Senate voted 43-4 to pass SB 106.[4]
Amendments in House[edit]
On December 14, 2021, during the resolution's second reading in the House, representatives proposed that the resolution contain four additional constitutional amendments, along with the lieutenant governor selection amendment.[4]
- Rep. Paul Schemel (R-90) proposed an amendment to provide that the governor's or an executive agency's orders that have the force and effect of law cannot be in effect for more than 21 days, unless the legislature votes to extend them. Representatives voted 113-90 to adopt the amendment.
- Rep. Eric Nelson (R-57) proposed an amendment to allow the legislature to pass concurrent resolutions, which the governor cannot veto, to disapprove of regulations. Representatives voted 113-90 to adopt the amendment.
- Rep. Dawn Keefer (R-92) proposed an amendment to require election audits, including audits of election results, the list of registered voters, certification of election machines, and administration of elections. Representatives voted 114-89 to adopt the amendment.
- Rep. Jeff Wheeland (R-83) proposed an amendment to require people to be citizens and at least 18 years old to vote in elections and require photo voter ID regardless of voting method. Representatives voted 114-89 to adopt the amendment.
On December 15, 2021, the House voted 113-87 to adopt SB 106, which then contained five constitutional amendments. House Republicans, along with one Democrat, supported SB 106, and 87 Democrats voted against the bill.[4]
As the House passed an amended version of SB 106, the joint resolution was returned to the Senate.
Amendments in Senate[edit]
On July 7, 2022, the Senate Rules & Executive Nominations Committee voted 11-6 to add a sixth constitutional amendment to SB 106. Republicans, and the committee's one independent member, supported adding the amendment, and Democrats opposed the addition.[4]
The sixth constitutional amendment would provide that "This constitution does not grant the right to taxpayer-funded abortion or any other right relating to abortion."[4]
The Rules & Executive Nominations Committee also removed the constitutional amendment on executive orders lasting 21 days from SB 106 and modified other constitutional amendments. The election audits amendment was changed to require audits of elections and election results but no longer mentioned voting machines or the list of registered voters. The voting requirements amendment continued to include photo voter ID but no longer addressed citizenship and age requirements for voting.[4]
Votes in Senate and House[edit]
On July 8, 2022, the Senate voted 28-22 to pass SB 106. Of the 28 senators supporting SB 106, 26 were Republican, one was a Democrat, and one was an independent. Of the 22 senators opposing SB 106, 20 were Democrats and two were Republicans.[4] As SB 106 was amended in the Senate, the joint resolution was returned to the House for a second time.
Later on July 8, the House voted 107-92 to pass the resolution. Those who voted 'yes' included 106 Republicans and one Democrat. Those who voted 'no' included 88 Democrats and four Republicans.[4]
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2023-2024 legislative session[edit]
In Pennsylvania, constitutional amendments require legislative approval during two successive legislative sessions before they're referred to the ballot for voters to decide. Legislators would have needed to approve the resolution again during the 2023-2024 session.
Lawsuit[edit]
On July 28, 2022, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf (D) sued the state General Assembly over a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion, which is part of the package of five total amendments. The lawsuit argues that the amendment violates the personal right to privacy in the Pennsylvania Constitution. Wolf also argued that the multiple, unrelated amendments packaged together in a single resolution also violated Article XI of the Pennsylvania Constitution.[5] On September 15, 2022, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court rejected Gov. Wolf's challenge.[6] On April 17, 2023, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania dismissed the lawsuit. Judge Lori Dumas wrote, "If every alleged misstep in the constitutional amendment process resulted in a lawsuit, then the potential exists for protracted, piecemeal litigation, which could potentially conflict with election-related deadlines."[7]
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Footnotes[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Pennsylvania General Assembly, "SB 106," accessed July 9, 2022
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source.
- ↑ National Lieutenant Governors Association, "Methods of Election," accessed August 27, 2025
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Pennsylvania General Assembly, "Senate Bill 106," accessed July 7, 2022
- ↑ Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, "Gov. Wolf Files Lawsuit to Protect Reproductive Rights," May 9, 2022
- ↑ Argus Media, "Pennsylvania court punts on constitutional changes," Sep 15, 2022
- ↑ NBC Philadelphia, "Court Tosses Tom Wolf Suit Against Voter ID, Abortion Amendments," April 17, 2023
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