Be sure to vote Tuesday in the primary

The primary election is just about here. On Tuesday voters return to the polls for the first time since the November election.

It’s understandable that there’s not nearly as much excitement in the air as there was six months ago.

It’s understandable that there’s not nearly as much excitement in the air as there was six months ago. The last election was the culmination of one of the most bitter political battles in living memory, conducted in the thick of a pandemic that greatly complicated voting procedures.

Arguments over the presidential race have not ended and don’t seem likely to conclude any time soon, but we ask voters to turn their attention — at least for a little while — to the polling that’s about to take place.

Elections for posts such as president, governor and congressional seats are very difficult to ignore. They dominate the news and general discussion, often starting long before anyone has an opportunity to vote. And television viewers are inundated with commercials for and/or against various candidates.

In odd-numbered years we elect people to jobs that involve a relatively low profile. This is a so-called off-year election, and the candidates on the ballot are running for local posts at the school board, county and municipal levels. The advertising largely comes in the form of roadside signs that may or may not mean anything to the people seeing them.

They may not seem exciting, but these races should be just as important to voters as the big-name ones that take place in even-numbered years. The people who get elected to local positions have a far greater impact on our day-today lives than those we send to Washington or even Harrisburg. Their actions affect the quality of our children’s education, the services residents depend on, law enforcement, public safety, local economic development and property tax bills. The quality of local government can have a tremendous impact on a community’s overall attractiveness and ultimately property values.

And those who are registered Democrats or Republicans should pay particular attention to the primary in years like this. Often decisions made in the primary leave voters little choice on the November ballot.

Candidates for school board and county judge are permitted to cross-file, meaning they can seek nomination on the Republican and Democratic tickets. If they win both nominations in the primary, only a long-shot write-in campaign could defeat them in the fall. And in many communities one party or the other tends to dominate, meaning the winner of the dominant party’s primary is practically a shoo-in for a general election victory. So those who want a say in who gets elected should be paying attention now.

There’s another reason why this particular primary election is important, and not just to those registered with a major political party.

There are four ballot questions for voters across Pennsylvania to decide. Anyone registered to vote, regardless of party affiliation or lack thereof, is entitled to participate.

Two of the questions relate to constitutional amendments that call for changes in procedures when it comes to declaring emergencies in Pennsylvania. These were drafted in response to Gov. Tom Wolf’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proponents want to give state legislators a larger role in the process.

A third constitutional amendment on the ballot calls for a prohibition against restricting or denying equal rights under the law because of race or ethnicity.

The final ballot question expands the availability of loans for organizations that provide emergency services.

We strongly encourage readers who plan to vote to spend some time exploring these issues and becoming familiar with the names on their local ballot, which can be found by looking at your county elections website.

So plan to come out and vote. The COVID situation has improved tremendously since the last election, and much as we wish more people would come out and participate in these elections, polling places are rarely crowded in off-year primaries. There’s no reason not to come out and make a difference in the things that affect your community most.