Court Opinion

ID: 9765741
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 04:17:20.536321+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:15.311472
License: Public Domain

Justice SAYLOR
Concurring.
Although I am in substantial alignment with the majority’s disposition, like Mr. Chief Justice Cappy, I would apply a different analysis centered on statutory interpretation, rather than constitutional infirmity.
As recited by the majority, pursuant to Section 951 of the Election Code, to appear on the ballot as an independent candidate an individual must submit “nomination papers” reciting, inter alia, that he has not been “presented as a candidate by nomination petitions for any public office to be voted for at the ensuing primary election, nor has he been nominated by any other nomination papers filed for any such office[.]” 25 P.S. § 2911(e)(5). I acknowledge that, in the abstract, this language could be read to suggest a cross-jurisdictional, anti-fusion proscription, which might raise the sorts of constitutional concerns that the majority undertakes to evaluate. A closer examination reveals, however, that the designated, operative terms “nominating papers” and “nominating petitions” pertain exclusively to Pennsylvania-specific submissions, i.e., documents that are “in form prescribed by the Secretary of the Commonwealth.” Id., §§ 2911(a), 2867. See generally In re Bedow, 848 A.2d 1034, 1037 (Pa.Cmwlth. 2004). It seems clear, then, that the General Assembly intended the prohibition here at issue to apply to individuals who have been otherwise nominated in Pennsylvania, as it would be unreasonable to assume that Pennsylvania election forms are used for election purposes in other states. Thus, by its terms, Section 951 simply does not have an extraterritorial focus or application.
A similar analysis pertains to the statutory disaffiliation provision grounding Appellees’ distinct challenge to Mr. Camejo’s candidacy based upon his ongoing affiliation with the *59California Green Party. Although Section 951.1 of the Election Code specifies that any individual who was a member of a “political party” during the relevant time period is excluded as a candidate of a political body, see 25 P.S. § 2911.1, for purposes of this provision a political party is defined with reference to political bodies that received certain minimum threshold vote levels in Pennsylvania in the prior general election. See 25 P.S. § 2831 (defining “political party” and “political body”); see also 25 P.S. § 2602(n, p) (specifying that the terms “political party” and “political body” are defined, for purposes of the Election Code, as set forth in section 801 of the Code, i.e., 25 P.S. § 2831). Thus, it seems evident that the General Assembly intended the exclusion at issue to apply only to members of organizations considered “political parties” according to these in-state standards.1
Here, although Appellees equate the California Green Party with the Pennsylvania Green Party, they do not develop the specific grounds for such direct association. In such circumstances, it is questionable whether Mr. Camejo’s candidacy is in tension with Section 951.1 in the first instance; therefore, I would include within the scope of the remand a directive to the Commonwealth Court to undertake the necessary fact finding, particularly as this may obviate the constitutional question, addressed by the majority. See generally Commonwealth v. Failor, 564 Pa. 642, 646-47 n. 5, 770 A.2d 310, 312 n. 5 (2001); Cheek v. United States, 498 U.S. 192, 203, 111 S.Ct. 604, 611, 112 L.Ed.2d 617 (1991).2
*60In summary, I would reverse the Commonwealth Court’s order as to Mr. Nader on the basis that the relevant provision of the Election Code, 25 P.S. § 9711(e), was not intended to impose constraints relative to individuals who are nominated by political parties in other states in a national election, and remand for additional fact finding in relation to the Section 951.1 challenge to Mr. Camejo’s candidacy.3
I also support the majority’s decision to direct the initiation of the signature-review process in the Commonwealth Court— as it may be controlling, and further delay could yield undesirable consequences—and to conditionally restore ballot access to Messrs. Nader and Camejo, based upon the relevant presumption of validity attaching to the nomination papers, as well as the public policy favoring ballot access.

. I do not concur in the Chief Justice’s reasoning that, because only major political parties may hold primaries, and the beginning of the requisite time period for disaffiliation under Section 951.1 begins 30 days before the primary, see 25 P.S. § 2911.1, it necessarily follows that the Legislature only intended the disaffiliation requirement to apply to major parties in the first instance. Because, as noted, the term "party” is defined by the Election Code, and the definition includes both major and minor parties, I see no reason to interpret that term more narrowly for purposes of Section 951.1 simply because the relevant time period is defined by reference to the date on which the primary election is held.

. I also distance myself from the majority's substantive, constitutional analysis on this point, particularly as it does not address the United States Supreme Court's approval of a similar political disaffiliation *60statute in Storer v. Brown, 415 U.S. 724, 94 S.Ct. 1274, 39 L.Ed.2d 714 (1974), cited by Appellees.

. In this regard, I also believe that the candidate’s motivation in conjunction with the material omission, if any, is a question of fact to be assessed, in the first instance, by the Commonwealth Court, as fact finder. While the Chief Justice adverts to the lack of any record evidence of bad faith, there was no hearing on the issue, and hence, no opportunity for the objectors to prove their averment that Mr. Camejo engaged in false swearing when he executed his affidavit. See RR. 57a.