First Read – April 23, 2024

WEATHER: Philadelphia: sunny, high of 69; Harrisburg: partly sunny, high of 70; Pittsburgh: mostly sunny, high of 69. 

FROM CITY & STATE:

* City & State’s 2024 PA Power 100: Meet the Pennsylvanians influencing what happens next – and how – in the Keystone State.

NEW THIS MORNING:

* Pennsylvania’s 2024 primary election is here. Here are answers to some of your most frequently asked questions, Spotlight PA reports.

* Polls for today’s primary election open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. If you’re in line at 8 p.m., you will be allowed to vote. You can find your district here and your polling place here, WESA reports.

* The presidential primary election winners in Pennsylvania may be a foregone conclusion but there are still plenty of other storylines to watch for today, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

* Two Democrats are vying for their party’s nomination for Auditor General in the April 23 primary election. The winner will face incumbent Republican Auditor General Tim DeFoor in the race to serve as the state’s fiscal watchdog, The Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports.

* A pair of Democrats from western Pennsylvania is seeking their party’s nomination for state Treasurer in today’s primary. The winner of the primary contest will face incumbent Republican Treasurer Stacy Garrity,  the Capital-Star reports. 

* In perhaps one of the most-watched Congressional primaries in the country, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee is seeking a second term representing Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District, and is facing primary challenger Bhavini Patel, the Capital-Star reports.

* The crowded Democratic Party race to face U.S. Rep. Scott Perry in Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District is almost at its end, the Capital-Star reports.

* At least half of the electricity needed to power 16 state government agencies will come from the sun within one to three years, making Pennsylvania the first state in the nation to achieve such a clean energy threshold, PennLive reports.

* The Philadelphia District Attorney’s office withdrew the arrest warrant issued last week for State Rep. Kevin Boyle, after officials learned yesterday that there is no active protection from abuse order that he could have violated, the Inquirer reports.

* Being at the wrong precinct, having an outstanding mail ballot, a misspelled name in the voter rolls and other rare but real confusion at a polling place can result in a voter being asked to cast a provisional ballot, WESA reports.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: to Mike Walsh, deputy secretary at PA Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources … and to Luke Bernstein, president and CEO, Pennsylvania Chamber of Business & Industry … Want to wish someone a happy birthday in our newsletter? Email their name, job title and upcoming birthday to editor@cityandstatepa.com.

EDITORIAL PAGES

* The Tribune Review writes that every year, twice a year, we do our best to push you to the polls. It’s your duty, we tell you. That is true.

* The York Dispatch published an editorial by Kevin Waite, professor of history at Durham University, who writes that Arizona’s Supreme Court opened a new front in the war on women’s reproductive rights last week when it resurrected an obscure 1864 law that bans abortion in almost all cases. 

NATIONAL POLITICS:

* Filings made public in the case charging Donald Trump with illegally retaining classified material after leaving office show an associate told him that he could face indictment if he failed to give them back, The New York Times reports.

* The Senate is returning to Washington today to vote on $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, taking the final steps in Congress to send the legislation to President Joe Biden’s desk, the Associated Press reports. 

KICKER: “As a lifelong Democrat, I’m proud to call Western PA home. I grew up in a working-class family and believe in the power of the American Dream – we must protect it. Being in touch with our region is important.” – Bhavini Patel, via the Capital-Star