In this May 12, 2021 file photo, Gov. Tom Wolf speaks at an event in Mechanicsburg, Pa. Beyond the local races on ballots, Pennsylvania's primary election will determine the future of a governor's authority during disaster declarations. Voters statewide Tuesday, May 18 will decide four separate ballot questions, including two on whether to give state lawmakers much more power over disaster declarations.

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania voters became the first in the nation to impose restrictions on a governor’s authority under an emergency disaster declaration, approving constitutional amendments sped to a statewide referendum by Republican lawmakers angry over how Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf handled the pandemic response.

The vote on Tuesday’s statewide primary ballot came as Republican lawmakers across the country have sought to roll back the emergency powers governors wielded during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Republicans see the referendum as a victory with strong political overtones, as the state 5gears up for a wide-open governor’s race in 2022 and Wolf leaving office after two terms.

Republicans in the state Legislature and those aiming to replace him in 2023 have made Wolf their top political target, repeatedly attacking his stewardship during the pandemic.

“Last night, Pennsylvanians voted to reject Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf’s overreach of executive powers after his failed COVID response — a clear sign of accountability coming in 2022,” Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel tweeted on Wednesday morning.

The two questions led with almost 54% of the vote, with 73% of precincts reporting. More than 2 million ballots were cast, still less than a quarter of the state’s 8.7 million registered voters.

The questions ask voters to end a governor’s emergency disaster declaration after 21 days and to give lawmakers the sole authority to extend it or end it at any time with a simple majority vote.