How Pennsylvania's mail ballot rules will lead to thousands of provisional ballots on Election Day
Thousands of Pennsylvania voters may have to cast provisional ballots on Election Day because of new mail-in voting rules.
The Pennsylvania Department of State estimates that as many as 100,000 voters could cast provisional ballots on Election Day because they failed to properly fill out their mail-in ballots.
Provisional ballots are used when a voter's eligibility to vote is in question.
The voter casts a provisional ballot, which is then counted once the voter's eligibility has been verified.
Here are some of the reasons why voters may have to cast provisional ballots on Election Day:
- They did not sign the outer envelope of their mail-in ballot.
- They did not provide a valid identification number on the outer envelope of their mail-in ballot.
- Their signature on the outer envelope of their mail-in ballot does not match the signature on their voter registration form.
- Their mail-in ballot was not postmarked by Election Day.
- Their mail-in ballot was received by the county board of elections after the deadline.
If you are casting a provisional ballot, you should make sure to follow the instructions on the ballot carefully.
You should also bring a valid identification with you to the polling place on Election Day.
This will help the election officials to verify your eligibility to vote.
The deadline to register to vote in Pennsylvania is October 24, 2022.
You can register to vote online, by mail, or in person at your county voter registration office.
