Pa. lawmakers look to do away with independently elected lieutenant governor
The Senate State Government Committee advanced a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow gubernatorial candidates to select their own running mate. The legislation, which passed the committee on Wednesday by a 10-1 vote, would establish a process that would have a party’s gubernatorial nominee choose the candidate to be their lieutenant governor, subject to political party or political body approval, prior to the general election. This would resemble the manner in which presidential candidates select their vice presidential running mate.
Currently, lieutenant governor candidates in Pennsylvania run separately from the governor in each party’s primary election. The top two vote-getters then run as a team in the general election.
State Government Committee Chairman Dave Argall, R-Schuylkill County, has championed this proposed amendment ...
“I think we’ve all seen reports in the press that sometimes the conflicting personalities just don’t mesh to the point where they admitted they didn’t even speak to each other for weeks at a time, which is not a good strategy,” Argall said.
He said the proposed amendment has the support of former Lt. Govs. Jim Cawley and Bob Jubelirer, both Republicans, as well as former Democratic Lt. Gov. Mark Singel. In addition, former chairs of the state Republican and Democratic parties Alan Novak and T.J. Rooney, respectively, also endorsed it at a 2017 hearing on the proposed amendment.
If Pennsylvania voters would approve of this constitutional change, Argall said it would join 13 other states that have moved to a process that lets the gubernatorial candidate select their lieutenant governor either before or after the primary election subject to approval by their respective state committee. Those states include Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, and Utah.
https://www.pennlive.com/news/2021/01/pa-lawmakers-look-to-do-away-with-independently-elected-lieutenant-governor.html