Want to Vote in PA’s Primary? You MUST Register to Vote Today

Today’s the day – it’s last call for voter registration in the state of Pennsylvania for those who want to cast a ballot in the primary.

The primary isn’t until April 26, but state law requires all Pennsylvanians who want to participate in an election to register to vote 30 days beforehand.

That means that if you want to vote in the primary you MUST register to vote by the end of today, Monday, March 28.

Not sure what to do? No worries, Pennsylvanians for Fair Elections has you covered.

Here’s what you need to know if you want to vote next month:

WHAT: The Pennsylvania primary election.

WHEN: April 26.

WHO: Pennsylvania primaries are closed. That means that Democrats must vote for Democrats and Republicans must vote for Republicans. Voters who are registered Independents may not participate. This means that if you are a Democrat and want to vote for a Republican, or if you are a Republican and want to vote for a Democrat, you must change your registration. If you are an Independent and want to vote for either a Democrat or a Republican, you have to change your affiliation.

HOW: As you might have heard, online voter registration is now available to prospective voters in Pennsylvania. If you need to register, change your registration or confirm it, click here. You can also register in person and via mail. Under certain circumstances, eligible voters may also request and complete an absentee ballot. For information on those options, click here.

WHERE: On election day, voters must cast their ballot at their particular polling location. If you’re registered but aren’t sure where your polling place is, you can check that out here.

It’s Election Day in Pennsylvania: Here’s What You Need to Know

It’s Election Day in Pennsylvania! If you registered to vote in this election, here is some need-to-know information.

When do I vote? In Pennsylvania, polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

Where do I vote? If you aren’t sure where your polling place is, click here and enter your information.

I am registered to vote, but will not be able to make it to the polls. Can I still cast a ballot? Unfortunately, not this close to the election. In the Keystone State, an application for an emergency absentee ballot (for voters dealing with unexpected sickness or disability) no later than by 5 p.m. the Friday prior to the election.

Do I need photo identification to vote? No. Pennsylvania’s voter ID law was deemed unconstitutional. However, if you are a first-time voter, you must present identification in order to vote. For more information on that, click here.

What is a provisional ballot and why might I need one? A provisional ballot is used to record a vote when there is some question regarding a voter’s eligibility. Voters who believe they are properly registered but do not appear on the poll book, first-time voters who do not have proper identification, and voters who are told by election officials that they are not eligible to vote should ask to cast a provisional ballot.

Where do I file an election-related complaint? Most of the issues voters have may be resolved by speaking with the judge of elections at your polling place. However, if you have a complaint about the regulation of Election Day activities, click here to submit.

Where can I follow the election results? Check your county elections website for results of the election.

Judge: PA Code Unfair to Minor Party Candidates

A U.S. District Court Judge last week ruled that Pennsylvania’s method of charging high court costs against candidates petitioning to run for public office violates the Constitution.

U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Stengel issued the 41-page opinion in Constitution Party of Pennsylvania v Cortes on July 4.

Here is an excerpt from a story posted by Philly.com:

In an opinion released Friday, U.S. District Judge Lawrence Stengel wrote that the ability of minor parties to organize and speak out “has been decimated” by portions of the state’s election code.

Specifically, Stengel took issue with a rule that has forced third-party candidates to gather many times the number of signatures required of Republicans or Democrats – and then pay as much as $100,000 in legal fees when their petitions are challenged.

Those burdens have together had a “chilling effect” on third-party candidates seeking office, the judge wrote, “demonstrated by the disappearance of minor parties from the general election ballot.”

Last November, Pennsylvania was one of four states whose statewide ballots lacked independent or third-party candidates, said Richard Winger, editor of the website Ballot Access News. “I don’t think Pennsylvanians realize they’re in there with Alabama and New Mexico and California,” he said. “It’s a big deal.”

To read the entire story, click here.

To read the entire decision (via Ballot Access), click here.

PA Newspapers to Legislature: Enact Same-Day Voter Registration

We told you last month that Pennsylvania lawmakers are pushing for legislation that would allow same-day voter registration in the Keystone State.

Pennsylvania state Rep. Ryan A. Bizzaro introduced the legislation May 31. On June 1, he and another lawmaker held a press conference at the Capitol urging for the bill’s passing.

By way of background, here’s what Bizzaro wrote in his co-sponsorship memo:

Same-day registration allows any qualified resident of the state to go to the polls or an election official’s office on Election Day, register to vote that day, and then vote. Proponents of same-day registration note that benefits include increased voter turnout, greater access for lower-income, young, and minority voters, and improved accuracy voter rolls.  Critics of same day registration often claim that it increases the potential for voter fraud.  However, in the years since the aforementioned states instituted same-day voter registration, there has not been one documented incident of voter fraud as a result of same-day voter registration.

Currently, twelve states- California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Wyoming- and the District of Columbia offer same-day registration. In 2016, same-day voter registration will be in effect in Maryland and Utah.  We believe it is time that Pennsylvania give its qualified electors a convenient option that creates additional access to the ballot while improving voter turnout.

What we didn’t tell you was that several Pennsylvania newspapers have written editorials and/or blogs imploring state lawmakers to pass the bill.

We wanted to make sure you saw them:

• Bizzaro himself took to the Internet to talk up the proposed law in an op-ed piece published by the Times-Tribune. To read his blog, click here.
• The Daily Times ran an editorial titled, “We Need Same-Day Voter Registration in PA.” You can (and we recommend you do) read the whole thing here. But here’s an excerpt from the strongly-worded piece:

Call our system of government what you will – a democracy or a republic or whatever – but its efficacy and accountability depends on an active electorate. How can our government possibly represent the wishes of the governed when the governed don’t even seem to give a damn? It is a recipe for disaster.

And if 19 percent seems dismal, there was one precinct in Lancaster County that reported a 3 percent turnout. Three percent. That’s unimaginable.

There are plenty of reasons for this, apathy among them, but the arcane and antiquated laws governing voting in Pennsylvania certainly contribute.

Among those laws is the provision that to be eligible to vote, prospective voters have to register at least 30 days in advance of Election Day. That goes back to the days before computers, when election office clerks labored over large books, like Bob Cratchit in “A Christmas Carol.”

• GoErie.com wrote an editorial titled, “Our View: Pa. Needs Same-Day Voter Registration.” In it, the editorial board writes, “It’s time for Pennsylvania to adapt its voting laws to today’s mobile, technology-driven society. Same-day registration is a good start.” To read the entire piece, click here.

Didn’t Vote in the Last Election? Don’t Miss the Primary – Register NOW!

You’d have to be living under a proverbial rock not to have heard news that voter turnout in the Nov. 4 mid-term elections was dismal.

Like, lowest-in-decades dismal.

If you were one of the thousands in Pennsylvania who didn’t turn out to the polls to cast a ballot, make sure your voice is heard next time around.

For those who did not cast their ballots because they weren’t registered to vote, remember that you must do so 30 days prior to the election you want to vote in.

That means that if you want to vote in the upcoming May 20 primary election in the Keystone State, you have to make sure  you’re registered by April 20 – which is just four months away.

Not sure if you’re eligible to register? Here are the requirements:

To register to vote in Pennsylvania, a person must be:

• A citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next primary, special, municipal, or general election;
• A resident of Pennsylvania and the election district in which he or she is registering for at least 30 days before the next primary, special, municipal, or general election; and
• At least 18 years of age on or before the day of the next primary, special, municipal, or general election.

While you can’t register to vote online in Pennsylvania, you can access more information and find the proper forms to do so by click here.

 

Report: PA Lags Behind in Modernizing Election System

Pennsylvania lags behind other states in the nation in modernizing its election systems, according to a recent study by Washington-based, good-government nonprofit Common Cause.

According to the study, the Commonwealth State rated positively on:

• training for poll workers
• accommodating disabled voters
• and record keeping.

What Pennsylvania isn’t so great at? The report cites:

• lack of online voting registration
• the state’s requirement that voters must have a reason to request an absentee ballot
• and the lack of early voting

The Common Cause study evaluated Pennsylvania’s progress in implementing 19 recommendations made in January by the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, as well at the progress of Arkansas, Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan and North Carolina. Pennsylvania was scored “satisfactory” on six, “mixed” on six, and “unsatisfactory” on six. One recommendation was not applicable.

Here’s an excerpt from the story:

The satisfactory ratings included the state’s integration of voting registration with the motor-vehicle agency, use of schools as polling places, recruiting to expand polling station volunteers, training, and two issues related to easy site access to polling stations.

The state received unsatisfactory grades on online voting, early voting, interstate exchange of voter information, a failure to establish voting centers where people can vote outside their precinct, access for people who are not strong English speakers and clear language used in voting material.

Without legislation, the state has limited ability to implement some of those 19 recommendations, said Ron Ruman, press secretary for the Department of State. Mandating change is further complicated by the autonomy counties have in establishing voting procedures and other changes. The advantage of local control is the ability to address a community’s specific needs, Ruman said.

Many nonprofits and organizations advocating for fair elections lauded the report for bringing the information to light.

Marian Schneider, senior attorney with the Advancement Project, said:

“I think that the state has a bully pulpit, and they could be out in front of a lot of these issues,” said Marian Schneider, senior attorney with the Advancement Project.

In an executive summary, Common Cause noted these overall conclusions of the study:

• States across the country – included in the report and beyond – are failing to give voters as many options as possible when it comes to voting before Election Day. This could suppress turnout and lead to long lines for those that vote
• States that are not covered by Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act are failing to adopt the Commission’s recommendation to provide sufficient bilingual support for limited English-proficient populations. This means that our democracy is not as inclusive and participatory as its promise;
• A majority of states have adopted electronic systems to seamlessly integrate voter data acquired through Departments of Motor Vehicles with statewide voter registration lists; although not specifically recommended by the Commission, we urge states to replicate this success by ensuring seamless integration of data acquired through all voter registration agencies, including public assistance agencies and healthcare exchanges;
• When it comes to poll-worker training, most states take a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction approach; this lack of uniformity could easily cause confusion for workers and voters alike, thereby keeping lines long;
• Six states conduct post-election audits as the Commission recommends; however none of these states has fully auditable elections because at least some of the voting systems do not produce a voter-verifiable paper record.

To read more about the study as it relates to Pennsylvania, click here.

To read more about the study itself, click here.

To read more about Pennsylvania voting laws, click here.