Voting Briefing
October 19 is the last day to register to vote in this year’s election.
October 27 is the last day for the county election office to receive your application for a mail-in or absentee ballot for this year’s election.
November 3 is election day. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Application and Ballot Tracking
In last week’s paper, we printed several links you can use to get more information. Tony Addison of Swarthmore wrote in to alert us to a more direct link you can use to track your ballot application. It requires you to enter only your name, date of birth, and county of residence.
Tony writes:
It doesn’t require your “application number” (I’ve no idea what mine is), and shows whether you applied in spring for a November election ballot.
You can mail or hand-deliver your “mail-in ballot,” but there is also a rule on the website: If you hand-deliver it, “You must deliver your ballot yourself, and you cannot have someone else deliver your voted ballot for you.”
So you can put your spouse’s ballot into a USPS mailbox, but you can’t hand it in at a county Board of Elections office. Bizarre — only in Pennsylvania!”
What’s on the Ballot?
Lora Lavin of Swarthmore (and of the League of Women Voters of Delaware County) writes:
While many people are most interested in the presidential race, there are also other important contests on the ballot. Go to the League’s nonpartisan online voters’ guide, vote411.org, and enter your street address to find out who and what will be on the ballot where you vote. Most candidates have posted information about themselves and their positions on important issues. If you don’t have internet access, call me at 610-328-3746 and I will mail you a printout.
More Information
Lora Lavin also wants people to know:
Votespa.com is a direct link to the Pennsylvania Department of State voting information website. It has up-to-date, accurate information on voting questions, and downloadable links to necessary forms. For those of us voting by mail, we can trace the status of our application and ballot. It also has information on how to vote by emergency absentee ballot should a last-minute problem prevent you from voting in person, if you were planning to do so.
Those without internet access can call the Delaware County Election Office at 610-891-4673.
The League of Women Voters of Delaware County is also ready to help. Call 610-789-0977 and leave callback information when prompted, or contact us at lwvdelcopa.org.
