Primary Election

Will Mayor Goode - pointing to a record of accomplishment that he says is far better than he is sometimes given credit for - get a chance to complete what he has started? Or will the repeated message of Democratic challenger Edward G. Rendell - that literally everything in Philadelphia is falling apart - be convincing enough to voters to make him a winner on primary day? Will former Mayor Frank L. Rizzo, in his switch to the Republican Party, be more successful in this mayoral primary than he was in the last in showing voters that the city needs a return to his style of hard-nosed leadership?

Members of the Chester County Republican Committee expect a long evening tonight as the party's various factions try to put aside their geographical and political differences and support a single slate of candidates for the primary election. For the candidates in the three hot contests for Common Pleas judge, sheriff and recorder of deeds, endorsement - a feat accomplished by winning 60 percent of the secret ballots - is the goal. In Chester County, where Republicans hold a better than 2-1 margin of registered voters over Democrats, endorsement at the convention is tantamount to election in the fall.

This was it: Their last big chance to sway voters, rally the troops, spread their message before Tuesday's primary. The sun was shining on them yesterday, and the three major Republicans hoping to be New Jersey's governor took full advantage of it. But while their goal was the same, Cary Edwards, Jim Wallwork and Christine Todd Whitman displayed somewhat different strategies yesterday, strategies that reflected their positions in the polls and...

My advice to all Philadelphians is to register Republican and vote for John Egan or Thacher Longstreth in the May 19 primary election. It is especially important to defeat Frank L. Rizzo in the primary. They can all re-register as Democrats after the election. Carol Norwitz Merion.

Polls are open in New Jersey for today's primary election. Democrats and Republicans are being asked to nominate their parties candidates for a range off offices, including the U.S. House of Representatives. Turnout is expected to be low because there are no statewide races to generate widespread interest. Polls close at 8 p.m. Read this morning's Inquirer story on the primary at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/95837014.html

PENNSYLVANIA Democrats should be very upset that they will not have a choice in next year's primary election for the U.S. Senate. Pennsylvanians have not had an influence in picking a candidate in our presidential primary since 1992 and now Democrats will be deprived of choosing their Senate candidate. Especially galling is the fact that Robert Casey is a pro-life candidate. Pro-choice Democrat Barbara Hafer would have not doubt made a strong primary challenger. If you are a pro-choice Democrat, you should write in Barbara Hafer in next year's general election for United States Senate.

Now that the primary election is approaching, we are seeing television commercials about our "favorite candidates. " Isn't it sad that our so-called favorite candidates are slandering others to gain votes? It seems that we no longer vote for the quality of a candidate, but instead vote for the person who has committed the lesser of "crimes. " The focus is no longer on the platform of the candidates, but on ruining reputations. I believe in getting ahead, but why must our methods be so barbaric?

YESTERDAY WAS a good news/bad news kind of day for Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato , the Democratic nominee for governor. Onorato raised slightly more money than state Attorney General Tom Corbett , the Republican nominee, from May 4 to June 7, according to campaign finance reports filed yesterday. But Onorato, who had to fend off three Democratic rivals in the May 18 primary election, including the well-funded state Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams , of Philadelphia, is now well behind Corbett in the money race.

Fairmount businesswoman Julie Welker, who contends the "Democrat Machine" stole the May 18 Democratic primary election for the city's 5th District City Council seat from her, yesterday asked District Attorney Lynne Abraham to step out of the case. Welker said she wanted Abraham to refer the matter to State Attorney General Mike Fisher for a criminal investigation. "We are asking her [Abraham] to recuse herself because we don't want there to be an appearance of a conflict of interest," Welker said.

State Rep. Babette Josephs, who has represented Center City's 182d District since 1985, conceded Tuesday's Democratic primary election to challenger Brian Sims in a statement issued Friday. "Throughout many difficult but successful races in my long service, I have consistently said that the voters are always right. I cannot change my tune now," Josephs said. "I am truly grateful to the voters for allowing me to serve them for so long and for the opportunity to work with so many dedicated, talented, patient, and professional colleagues, staff members, and volunteers.

Voters in two state House districts in southeastern and Northeast Philadelphia may find Tuesday's primary election ballots a bit confusing. In the 186th District in South Philadelphia, former State Rep. Harold James is running in a Democratic special election to complete the term of former State Rep. Kenyatta Johnson, who resigned in January to become a City Council member. James, who lost his seat to Johnson in 2008 after 10 two-year terms, is not running in the primary election.

VOTERS IN state House districts in South Philly and Northeast Philly may find Tuesday's primary election ballots a bit confusing. In the 186th District in South Philadelphia, former state Rep. Harold James is running in a Democratic special election to complete the term of former state Rep. Kenyatta Johnson, who resigned in January to become a City Council member. James, who lost his seat to Johnson in 2008 after 10 two-year terms, is not running in the primary election to serve in the position in the next term.

Four of the five men seeking the Republican nomination to challenge U.S. Sen Bob Casey Jr. in the November general election clashed Wednesday night about their conservative credentials. It was a fight egged on by the state Democratic Party, which issued a news release before the debate at the Union League, noting that candidates Steve Welch and Tom Smith are former Democrats. That matters in a Republican primary because both men are fighting for the role of front-runner.

Bloated with power yet seemingly void of leadership, the Pennsylvania Republican Party can't figure out how to get what it wants with reapportionment. Twice this year, the state Supreme Court has had to provide adult supervision. The Republican-dominated Legislative Reapportionment Commission was charged with the never-simple task of redrawing 203 House and 50 Senate district boundaries to reflect population shifts. Usually, the controlling party manipulates the process in its favor.

After listening to arguments Monday, a federal judge promised to rule "with dispatch" on whether to block Pennsylvania from using 2001 political boundaries for the forthcoming primary election. The state Supreme Court ruled, 4-3, last month to toss out a plan to reapportion the state's House and Senate seats, saying the map was too badly gerrymandered to be legal. The Supreme Court suggested the state revert to using the maps from 2001 for the April 24 election. Republican House and Senate leaders - as well as Hispanic voter advocates - then turned to the federal court, seeking a restraining order to prevent the state from doing so. They argued that the populations of the districts have shifted so much in the past decade that using the previous boundaries would be unconstitutional, violating the "one person, one vote" principle of districts of roughly equal size.

After listening to arguments Monday, a federal judge promised to rule "with dispatch," on whether to block Pennsylvania from using 2001 political boundaries for the forthcoming primary election. The state Supreme Court ruled 4-3 last month to toss out a plan to reapportion the state's House and Senate seats, saying the map was too badly gerrymandered to be legal. The Supreme Court suggested the state revert to using the maps from 2001 for the April 24 election. Republican House and Senate leaders - as well as Hispanic voter advocates - then turned to the federal court, seeking a restraining order to prevent the state from doing so. They argued that the populations of the districts have shifted so much in the past decade that using the previous boundaries would be unconstitutional, violating the "one person, one vote" principle of districts of roughly equal size.

New Jersey voters began the work of settling a few party skirmishes at 6 a.m. Tuesday as they cast ballots in primaries for Legislature, county freeholder, and municipal offices. Though the primaries are quiet in South Jersey, in Union County, powerful Democratic State Sen. Raymond Lesniak; Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, a former Democratic Party chairman, and Democratic Assemblywoman Annette Quijano are in competitive primaries in the 20th District. Lesniak has served in the Legislature since 1978.

IF ELECTED OFFICIALS donated $100 to the school district every time they said, "It's about the children," we could close the district's canyon-wide financial gap without resorting to raising taxes. But clearly it's not about the children. It's about the adults, our elected officials. Why else, with the budget clock ticking down (the city needs to pass a budget by June 30), would Mayor Nutter and City Council just now be haggling over how to close the gap? The district's financial woes have been known for many months.