Where a nomination petition has been duly filed for any primary, under the provisions of this article, and thereafter, and before the day of the primary, the candidate named in said petition dies, the original signers of said petition, or the majority of them, may sign another petition proposing a new candidate for said office at any time prior to the printing of the ballots or ballot labels. Said petition shall have the same force and effect as the original petition, and the name of the candidate so nominated shall be substituted for that of the deceased candidate.
25 P.S. § 2877