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IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN THE MATTER OF  :  
THE NOMINATION PAPER OF  :  
NICOLE PRIMAS GAINES  :  
Candidate for Representative  :  
in the General Assembly from the 24th Legislative District  : :  No. 728 M.D. 1998  
:  
:  
JOSEPH PRESTON,  :  
Petitioner  :  
PER CURIAM  

O R D E R
AND NOW, this 13th day of November, 1998, it is ordered that the above-captioned opinion filed on August 26, 1998 shall be designated OPINION, rather than MEMORANDUM OPINION, and it shall be reported.
IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN THE MATTER OF  :  
THE NOMINATION PAPER OF  :  
NICOLE PRIMAS GAINES  :  
Candidate for Representative  :  
in the General Assembly from the 24th Legislative District  : :  No. 728 M.D. 1998  
:  
:  
JOSEPH PRESTON,  :  
Petitioner  :  Heard: August 20, 1998  

BEFORE:  HONORABLE WARREN G. MORGAN, Senior Judge
OPINION BY SENIOR JUDGE MORGAN FILED: August 26, 1998
Before the Court are the objections to the nomination papers filed by Nicole Primas Gaines as candidate for Representative in the General Assembly from the 24th Legislative District.  Gaines had previously filed nomination petitions for the May, 1998 primary election as a candidate of the Democratic Party for the same office.  Those petitions were challenged and, by order of Judge Doyle of this Court dated March 31, 1998, were set aside for failure to contain sufficient number of valid signatures.  Gaines subsequently filed the nomination papers presently before us, seeking to appear on the ballot for the 1998 General Election as a candidate of the "Gaines for Change" political body.
The parties have stipulated to the relevant facts, and further agreed that this case involves the interpretation of a single question of law: whether a person whose nomination petitions for a primary election have been judicially set aside is precluded from filing nomination papers as a candidate of a political body for the ensuing general election?
Both parties agree that this matter is controlled by our interpretation of Section 951 of the Election Code, Act of June 3, 1937, P.L. 1333, as amended, 25 P.S.

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Pennsylvania Law