There’s been a lot of discussion online the past few weeks about voting by mail in Pennsylvania. In this edition of Blue Views, we’ll discuss a few aspects of mail-in ballots for the 2024 General Election.
Safe, Secure and Weatherproof
Using a mail-in ballot has several built in advantages. You don’t have to worry about bad weather, long lines or unexpected illnesses interfering with your plan to vote. You don’t need to fret about making time out of your workday or getting a ride to the polls, or about the possibility of in-person harassment or voter intimidation. You can take as much time as you like to complete your ballot.
When a ballot is received at Voter Services, a barcode on the outer envelope is scanned and the voter’s signature is checked against voter records to make sure the individual is registered. These steps ensure that an individual can’t vote twice. Ballots remain sealed until 7 a.m. on Election Day, which is the earliest counties can open and begin to process them.
If you’re worried about dropping a completed ballot in the mail, Chester County has you covered. Voter Services will have drop boxes in October and early November in a number of convenient locations including libraries that are manned, video-recorded and emptied every night. You can deposit a completed ballot in a drop box until 8 p.m. Election Day, when the physical polls close. Those locations and hours haven’t yet been finalized, but will be well publicized. Note that you may get your mail-in ballot a week or two prior to drop boxes becoming available. We’ll cover drop boxes and Election Day processes for counting mail-in ballots in more depth in a later edition of Blue Views.
Making Sure Your Vote Counts
We’ve learned a lot since 2020, the first time Pennsylvania used no-excuse mail-in ballots in a presidential election. That year, thousands of mail-in ballots couldn’t be counted because of unintended errors made by voters. (Remember “naked ballots” and a number of court cases over the nuances of mail ballots?) Since that time, the state has redesigned mail-in ballot materials with clearer instructions and made other changes that should decrease the number of rejected ballots. (This process is different from ballot challenges, which will also be covered in a later edition.)
Chester County, thanks to our Democratic Commissioners Josh Maxwell and Marian Moskowitz, has invested a lot of effort and money in making sure the mail-in process here is secure and efficient. If you receive a mail-in ballot, you can return it without worry.
There’s no need to bring an unvoted mail-in ballot to the polls on Election Day — that will take extra time for the voter and pollworkers on what is already expected to be a busy day. Note if you received a mail-in ballot and decide to vote in person, you have to bring all the ballot materials, including the envelope it was mailed in, to the polls and surrender those materials to the poll worker or judge of elections in your precinct before receiving an in-person ballot. It’s easier to just drop the mail-in ballot at a designated drop box location by 8 p.m. on Election Day.
The PA Department of State has also developed and issued numerous direction and guidance documents for counties covering various aspects of the voting process. All are public and can be accessed here.
When Does Voting Begin?
You might have read online that early voting in Pennsylvania begins on September 17. That doesn’t necessarily mean every voter who has requested a mail-in ballot will receive it on that date. That’s the earliest counties are allowed to begin sending ballots; the actual date is left up to each county. Chester County Voter Services, for example, plans to begin sending ballots the first week in October. Expect an email when your blank ballot is mailed as a heads-up. Registered Democrats should also expect a sample ballot in the mail from the Chester County Democratic Committee around or before the time you receive the ballot. You can also download a sample ballot from our website at centralchescodems.com/sample-ballots.
If you’re not sure whether you requested a mail-in ballot, contact Voter Services directly. To make sure you get accurate information, go right to the source rather than using a third-party app or website.
