Pennsylvania Mail Ballot Applications Close Oct. 27 at 5 P.M.

Pennsylvania voters who want to vote by mail in the Nov. 3 general election must complete their application by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The application must arrive at the county elections office by that time, and Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt urged voters in a statement on the 20th to apply now, if they want to vote by mail, so they can secure enough time to receive the ballot, complete it and return it within the deadline.

Any registered voter can apply for a mail ballot without giving a reason. Applications can be submitted online through the state election portal, vote.pa.gov, in person at a county elections office, or by downloading a paper application form and sending it by mail. Voters who visit a county elections office in person can complete the application, ballot pickup, marking and submission in a single visit, and this option is available through the application deadline on the 27th.

Identification information is needed when applying. Applicants must write a Pennsylvania driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number on the application, and if this information cannot be verified, the ballot may not be sent.

A completed ballot is valid only if it arrives at the county elections office by 8 p.m. on election day, Nov. 3. A postmark does not count, so mailing a ballot right before the deadline can result in a late arrival and an invalid vote. Voters who feel a mail return is cutting it close are safer submitting the ballot in person at the county elections office or at a ballot drop box installed by the county.

Mistakes in completing the envelopes also require care. The marked ballot must first be placed in the secrecy envelope, and that envelope must then be placed inside the outer envelope, whose declaration the voter must sign and date. Ballots returned without the secrecy envelope or missing a signature on the outer envelope have been invalidated in past elections. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that when a ballot is invalidated because of an envelope error, the county must notify the voter, and a good number of counties also provide an opportunity to correct the error, so voters who receive a notice should act on it promptly according to the instructions.

Voters who change their mind and want to vote in person at a polling place must bring the mail ballot they received and the declaration envelope and surrender them in order to vote on a regular ballot. Without them, the voter will have to vote on a provisional ballot, and the completed mail ballot itself cannot be submitted at a polling place.

In this election, voters will elect a governor, members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and members of the state Senate and House. In the governor’s race, Democratic incumbent Gov. Josh Shapiro faces Republican candidate Stacy Garrity. Voters who did not apply for a mail ballot can vote at their designated polling place on election day, Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Meanwhile, voter registration for this election closed on the 19th. The progress of ballot applications and returns can be checked at vote.pa.gov.