Jury commissioners will have hearing next month
Pennsylvania’s jury commissioners will have another day in court next month in their quest to have their office on the ballot in the May 21 primary.
Earlier this month, the jury commissioners asked that their office be placed on the primary ballot as usual, but that the court order a special two-week petition circulating period for the office, or a special election date.
The Pennsylvania State Association of Jury Commissioners asked Commonwealth Court to reject a suggestion by Secretary of the Commonwealth Carole Aichele that a primary election not be held for the office.
In a letter to county elections departments, Aichele cited a section of the Election Code that allows parties and political bodies to fill vacancies for county and local offices 50 days before a municipal election, which, in this case, would be Sept. 16.
The jury commissioners’ attorney, Samuel Stretton of Chester County, contended this is not the situation with the jury commissioners.
The outcome of the of the April 3 hearing in Harrisburg affects only the counties, including Washington and Greene, in which the county commissioners voted to abolish the office of jury commissioner.
Washington County Republican Jury Commissioner Richard Zimmerman is an appellant in the Commonwealth Court case, and he said he intends to run for the office.
His Democratic counterpart, Judith Fisher, attempted to file nominating petitions with the Washington County elections office on March 12, the state-imposed deadline, but the office rejected the documents based on a procedural order by the state Supreme Court.
Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled a law unconstitutional that allowed for the abolishment of the office if a majority of county commissioners so voted because the legislation was “log-rolled” with unrelated issues in a single bill, obscuring the jury commission issue.