It is occasional that we have to wait longer for an item to arrive in the post.
Think about it. Bills, flyers, catalogs… not much that would make you run to the mailbox every day.
However… let me present for your consideration – the humble ballot.
Yes, mail-in voting. It’s been around since it helped soldiers cast ballots during the Civil War. Mail-in voting has been on the rise nationwide since the 1980s, and in Pennsylvania since the passage of Act 77.
Nearly 900,000 Pennsylvanians requested absentee ballots for the April presidential primary. More than 1.4 million requested absentee ballots for the 2022 general election.
They are popular with Keystone State voters.
So now that Vice President Kamala Harris is officially the Democratic candidate and former president Donald Trump is the Republican Party’s nominee… and you’ve already made up your mind about your candidate… you may be ready to vote early.
Well then come on. Where’s my voice?
If only it were that basic.
On Tuesday, Al SchmidtCommonwealth Secretary, a list of all candidates was sent to each district electoral councilas is known, existed at that time to vote in the November election. With this list is a statement of the form in which they are to be placed.
Now the work begins.
Preparation
County elections offices must now finalize their ballots for the 2024 general election. All information to be included must be collected, verified, and corrected. Procedures must be developed to record audio ballots for available marking devices, ensuring correct pronunciation.
Ballots must be certified to have complied with all applicable state laws regarding voting order, party affiliation, order of candidate names, location and wording of ballot headings, and other graphic elements.
Translations must also be done to ensure that non-English speaking populations can understand the language of the ballot. This is often done for Spanish speakers, although some counties also provide Chinese translations.
Election officials must ensure that the target areas for voting are clearly displayed next to each candidate’s name and that all target areas are free of fold lines, time stamps, and other voting text or images. If ballots are double-sided, procedures must be implemented to ensure that the target areas do not overlap with those on the opposite side of the page.
“Nay, I will be the model of all patience; I will say nothing.” – William Shakespeare
Printing
Have you ever wondered why a ballot appears to be printed on “heavy” 80# paper? Probably. Have you ever wondered about the ink used on that ballot? Probably not.
Both elements are vital for the effective operation of scanning equipment.
For presidential elections, counties are required to print ballots for 100% of registered voters. For a smaller county like Adams, that could mean printing about 75,000 ballots. For a huge metropolitan area like Philadelphia, that printing job involves more than 1.05 million ballots.
Counties must also print a supply of provisional ballots to be used on Election Day. These ballots are printed so that they cannot be run through an optical scanner. They must be manually checked for approval and then sent to DOS to be added to the vote total.
All this takes time, especially since Labor Day falls in early September.
“Patience and perseverance have a magic power to make difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” – John Quincy Adams
Test Decks
Typically, sample ballots are sent back to the county for review. These “sample sets” are marked by election officials and run through their scanners to make sure the ink, paper quality, and time stamps pass inspection. If there are any errors, corrections are sent to the printer and the process continues.
“He who has patience can have what he wants.” – Benjamin Franklin
Post
County election offices utilize print shops that also function as mailing houses to facilitate send absentee ballots to those who have requested them. Once they receive approval to mail ballots, the offices send electronic lists of the names and addresses of registered voters who have requested absentee ballots to these mailing houses. The addresses are stamped on envelopes and delivered to the United States Post Office.
“Be patient with everything, but above all with yourself.” – St. Francis de Sales
USPS Shipping
Now that the first batch of envelopes have been delivered to the post office, it’s their turn to deliver your mail-in ballot to the address you provided to the election office. This can take anywhere from 1 to 5 days, depending on your location.
“Patience and diligence, like faith, can move mountains.” – William Penn
Abstract
Under Pennsylvania election law, September 16 is the first day county boards are to begin holding elections. have to begin processing official applications for absentee and mail-in civilian votes. That is 50 days before November 5, 2024, the date of the general election.
Boards may decide to begin considering applications earlier if they deem it appropriate.
October 21 is the last day to register to vote in the election, while October 29 is the last day to submit applications for a postal vote.
Remember, patience is a virtue.
