A local campaign for Pennsylvania's May 18, 2027 municipal primary falls into four parts. From now until mid-February, you prepare: confirm your seat, line up circulators and set up your texting. From Tuesday, February 16 to Tuesday, March 9, 2027, you collect and file your nomination petition. From March 10 to Wednesday, March 24, you watch for objections. From late March to Tuesday, May 18, you campaign among the voters of your party, with two voter deadlines along the way: Monday, May 3 to register and 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 11 to apply for a mail ballot.
This plan is for Democratic and Republican candidates for school director, borough council, township supervisor and similar local seats. The February 16, March 9 and May 18 dates, and the deadlines that follow from them, are calculated from state law (marked "based on state law"), so confirm each one with your county board of elections. For the rules behind each step, see our guide to running for local office in Pennsylvania.
Who you are campaigning to
Pennsylvania has a closed primary. Only voters registered in your party can sign your petition, and only they can vote for you on May 18. Plan every phase around that group: your party's registered voters who live in your district. If you are a school director candidate who cross-files in both major parties, your audience includes registered voters of both parties.
November and December 2026: decide and prepare
Week of November 2. Confirm which seat you are running for and that it is on the 2027 ballot. Your county board of elections, and your school district, borough or township office, can tell you whose terms end. Check the qualifications for your office: residency, voter registration and any offices that cannot be held together with the one you want.
Weeks of November 9 and 16. If you plan to text supporters, you will need a registered political committee, because Campaign Verify is only for committees. Ask your county board of elections what forming and registering a committee involves for your office, and get the committee an EIN (its federal tax ID number). Campaign Verify requests made on or after Sunday, November 15, 2026 last until January 31, 2029, so make your request after that date.
Weeks of November 23 through December 28. Set up your texting (see the next section), design a sign-up sheet that asks for permission to text, and start listing people who might circulate for you. Each circulator must be a Pennsylvania voter enrolled in your party.
December: set up your texting in CampaignCNX+
Texting setup involves outside reviews, so do it early in the winter rather than in May:
- Confirm your committee filing is online, then request Campaign Verify. Campaign Verify is the check that confirms to the carriers (the mobile phone companies) that you are a real campaign. It costs $95 per two-year cycle, is for 527 committees (the federal tax status of a political committee), and needs your committee's EIN and an election-authority filing that is published online. The PIN goes only to the contact details on that filing, and candidates with no committee are not eligible. Ask your county board of elections whether your local committee filing can be viewed online. If it cannot, ask Campaign Verify Support how to proceed before you pay. Campaign Verify decides eligibility.
- Open your CampaignCNX+ account. CampaignCNX+ files your carrier registration, either 10DLC (the carrier registration for texting from a local-style number) or toll-free, along with the Campaign Verify token you buy from Campaign Verify. 100 free SMS included. Your number is $5 a month. For a toll-free number, carrier review usually takes about three business days.
- Create your supporter group and a custom field for each person's consent date and source, so every name you add later is recorded properly.
- Write and schedule your spring reminders now: one for the May 3 registration deadline, one for the May 11 mail ballot deadline and one for primary day. Texts send only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the recipient's time zone, and STOP replies are handled automatically.
Add only people who agreed in writing to receive your texts. A petition signature is not permission, so never text everyone who signed your petition or everyone on a voter list. Our campaign text templates for local races offer wording you can adapt.
January to mid-February 2027: get the paperwork ready
Week of January 4. Get the nomination petition form for your office and the candidate's affidavit from your county board of elections. Read the instructions twice.
Week of January 11. Confirm your circulators. If you are cross-filing for school director, you need at least one circulator enrolled in each party.
Weeks of January 18 and 25. Prepare your Statement of Financial Interests for the 2026 calendar year. This ethics disclosure is filed with the school district, borough or township you would serve, and a copy goes with your petition. Candidates for judge of elections and inspector of elections do not file one.
Weeks of February 1 and 8. Build your list of party voters in the district and plan your routes. Set a signature goal well above the minimum of 10. For example, a candidate might aim for 25 to 30 valid signatures so that a few rejected lines do not matter.
Petition season: February 16 to March 9, 2027
Tuesday, February 16 (based on state law). Circulation opens. No signature dated before today counts. Start on the first day, because an early start leaves time to fix problems.
Weeks of February 15 and 22. Collect signatures from registered members of your party who live in the district. Make sure every signer prints their name legibly, writes their registered address and adds the date. Carry your text sign-up sheet as a separate page, and offer it to each signer.
Week of March 1. Count your valid signatures. If you are short of your goal, spend the week filling the gap. Number the pages in order at the foot of each page and bind them together.
Tuesday, March 9 (based on state law). The last day a signature may be dated, and the filing deadline. Deliver your petition and notarized affidavit to the county board of elections by its ordinary closing time, and make sure your Statement of Financial Interests is filed and attached. Plan to file early in the day rather than near closing time, and keep your filing receipt.
Beacon's guide to Pennsylvania nomination petitions covers circulating and checking a petition in more detail.
Objection and withdrawal window: March 10 to March 24
Tuesday, March 16 (based on state law). The last day for anyone to file an objection to a petition in court. Check with your county board whether any objection names you.
Friday, March 19 and Wednesday, March 24 (based on state law). The latest dates for a court hearing and decision on any objection. If you are challenged, contact an election attorney right away.
Wednesday, March 24 (based on state law). The last day to withdraw. After this date, candidates' places on the primary ballot are decided by casting lots, and your county board can tell you when.
The primary campaign: late March to May 18
Weeks of March 29 through April 19. Knock on doors of your party's voters in the district, starting with those most likely to vote. Record each conversation so you can return to people who were undecided. Ask supporters to sign up for texts, with the date recorded.
Week of April 26. Remind supporters that Monday, May 3 is the last day to register to vote or change party for the primary (based on state law). Your scheduled reminder goes out this week.
Monday, May 3 (based on state law). Registration deadline. After today, focus on voters who are already registered in your party.
Week of May 3. Tell supporters who will be away that the last day to apply for a mail or absentee ballot is 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 11 (based on state law). Pennsylvania does not have early voting in the way many states do, but a voter can apply for, fill out and return a mail ballot in one visit to the county election office.
Week of May 10. Finish your door knocking and confirm your primary-day helpers.
Tuesday, May 18 (based on state law). Primary day. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and mail ballots must reach the county board of elections by 8 p.m. Your primary-day text goes out in the morning.
After the primary
If you win your party's nomination, the municipal election is on Tuesday, November 2, 2027. The fall deadlines are Monday, October 18 to register and 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 26 to apply for a mail ballot (both based on state law). Our Pennsylvania 2027 municipal election calendar lists every date through the day new officials take office. For the texting rules that apply in every state, see our political texting guide.
Start the plan this month
The first weeks of this plan are the easiest to skip and the hardest to make up later. Confirm your seat, set up your committee, and have your texting registered before the holidays. When your committee filing is online, start a trial and schedule your spring reminders.
