I was happy to see that my friends at BugPAC in State College were able to celebrate last night after the Pennsylvania primaries. Three of BugPAC’s four candidates survived primary season and will appear on the November general election ballot, though Michael Black will be appearing as a Republican after falling to Don Hahn in the Democratic primary last night. Evan Myers and Dan Murphy will appear on the Democratic ticket for borough council spots. BugPAC can also celebrate an incredible increase in voter participation among Penn Staters, which is worth celebrating in and of itself:

With a surge of absentee ballots cast in the primary election Tuesday, BugPAC may be on its way to fulfilling its slogan of reclaiming State College. The political action committee, with strong ties to Penn State, has campaigned to secure the Democratic nominations of candidates who aim to “make State College more inclusive” of diverse residents.

In 2015, only 30 absentee ballots were cast in the Borough of State College for the municipal primary, according to Centre County election coordinator Jodi Neidig. That number is up to 193 this time around. With most students away on summer vacation, BugPAC has worked over the past few months to register and equip voters with absentee ballots. “For a primary, that’s exceptionally high,” Neidig said.

Every vibrant college town should have a BugPAC of its own.