News Detail

Independents Unable To Vote In Municipal Primary Election In May

Elections

April 29, 2025

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. – Voters who are currently registered as an Independent/Non-Partisan or with any minor political party (i.e. Green, Libertarian, Constitutional, etc.) are not permitted to vote in the upcoming Municipal Primary on May 20. Pennsylvania has a closed primary voting system, which allows only registered Democrats and Republicans to vote for their parties’ candidates in the primary.

Offices on the Municipal Primary ballot include judge of the superior court, judge of the commonwealth court, county treasurer, school director, tax collector, township auditor, township supervisor, borough mayor, borough councilperson, magisterial district judge #39-3-04, judge of election, and inspector of election.

Voters wanting to vote for any of these offices will need to change their party affiliation to either Democratic or Republican prior to May 5 by one of the following methods. Voters may also submit a change of name and/or a change of address. Voters who are already registered and only need to update their information must check the applicable box(es) on the voter registration form to change their name, change their address or change their party affiliation.

Ways To Submit A Change of Name, Address or Party Affiliation

Submit changes online by visiting www.vote.pa.gov/register, which is available in both English and Spanish.

● Make changes in person at the Franklin County Voter Registration Office, 272 N. Second St., Chambersburg. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

● Submit changes via mail one of two ways:

○ Obtain a state or federal voter registration mail application from a candidate, political party or other federal, state or municipal offices.

○ Applications can also be requested from the Department of State’s website, www.vote.pa.gov. Download the voter registration application on the Department of State’s website, www.vote.pa.gov or from the Franklin County website, www.franklincountypa.gov.

● Apply at a Department of Transportation photo license center when updating a driver’s license.

● Apply at a government agency. Clients of the following agencies may apply to register to vote or to make changes to their registration:

○ State offices that provide public assistance and services to persons with disabilities.

○ Armed forces recruitment centers

○ County Clerk of Court offices

○ Area Agencies on Aging and county mental health/intellectual disabilities offices

○ Centers for Independent Living

Deadline To Make Changes Is May 5

The deadline to apply for a Change of Name, Address and/or Party or to make a New Registration for the upcoming Municipal Primary is May 5. Voter applications received or postmarked after that date will be processed for the 2025 Municipal Election in November. Once the application is processed, each voter will receive a voter registration card in the mail notating the location of his or her polling place.

Any questions concerning updating a voter’s registration information should be directed to the Franklin County Voter Registration Office at 717-261-3886 or the Franklin County Election Board at 717-261-3812. Additional election and voter registration information is available on the Franklin County website, www.franklincountypa.gov.