This civics column, for new readers to the SCOOP USA Newspaper, is a vehicle we use to help educate people who read our paper about what civic engagement is and why civics is important.
We strive to keep our readers up to date on major laws on a local and national level that impact the lives of all of us.
For the last five or six weeks in a row, I’ve been writing about various components of the upcoming Primary Election in Pennsylvania, with a strong focus on Philadelphia.
The focus has been on Philadelphia because we have a Mayoral race.
All of our city council members’ seats are up for grabs.
We must elect a Sheriff, a Register of Wills, a City Controller, 10 Judges for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, and two Judges for the Philadelphia Municipal Court.
Did I get everybody in the mix? Whew, it’s a lot, even for a politically savvy voter.
The exciting and interesting thing that has happened since I penned my last Civics 101 column is that political candidates’ names have now been drawn, from an old coffee can no less (a Philadelphia tradition), to ascertain the order in which candidates’ names will appear on the official voting ballot. Keep in mind, just because we now have a list of names in the order in which they will appear on the ballot–does not mean that all of these names will stay on the ballot. This week, decisions will be made about any candidates whose petitions are challenged. If a candidate ultimately does not have enough “good signatures” on their petitions, their petitions can be deemed ineligible because they failed to get enough legitimate registered voters’ signatures.
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