Three local counties report a significant increase in requests for mail-in ballots following Gov. Tom Wolf’s push for the voting option during COVID-19.
May 26 was the deadline to apply for mail-in ballots for the Pennsylvania primary election. In McKean County, 3,276 requests were received for mail-in and absentee ballots; in Cameron County, 616 requests were received; and in Potter County, 1,385 mail-in ballots were requested.
The primary election is Tuesday.
For McKean County, that number is quite the jump from previous elections, when people could only mail in their ballots if they qualified for an absentee ballot. This jump may mean that results will not be as readily available as in previous years, although Lisa Pratt, director of elections, remains optimistic.
“This number is a large increase for us. We will have extra help canvassing the ballots and we have purchased a second scanner,” Pratt said. “Since this is the first time we will be dealing with this higher volume of mail-in/absentee ballots, I don’t know how long it will take us. I am hoping with the extra help and the extra scanner that we will be able to stay on our regular schedule.”
Meanwhile, plans are in place for COVID-19 related restrictions for those who opt to vote in person.
“We will ask that people stay 6 feet apart when inside the polling place. We are supplying tape for the poll workers to use to mark the floor,” she explained.
Pratt also explained that poll workers will be supplied with face masks, face shields, hand sanitizer and disinfecting products to help protect both those volunteers and the voters who visit the polling locations to cast their vote.
For Cameron County, the 600-plus mail-in ballot requests are a more than 600%-increase over the 2016 primary, when 84 requests were received. In contrast, 50 mail-in ballots were requested for the 2012 primary, 99 for the 2008 primary and 40 for the 2004 primary.
This significant increase may make a difference when it comes to counting the votes for the county.
“We are not sure of the timeline as this will be the first time using our DS-200 scanning machines for this election. (We are) hoping it will not change much of our procedures, but it may delay the reporting by a few hours is our guesstimate, since we are so small/rural with only 2596 primary eligible voters,” said Brenda G. Munz, Cameron County director of elections.
Cameron County’s Board of Elections assisted in preparing and mailing the ballots, a change from the typical process of the two office staff handling the process.
Meanwhile, Cameron County polling locations will be encouraging the wearing of masks and social distancing of six feet between voters, per CDC guidelines, during the primary.
In terms of protecting the poll workers, the same preventative measures will be in place and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) will be provided.
For Potter County, a total of 1,385 mail-in ballots were requested. Sandra Lewis, Potter County director of elections, noted that this number did not put a strain on the county’s Election office.
“We have above and beyond enough ballots in our office for the increase,” she said.
Meanwhile, in terms of social distancing efforts and preventative measures in place for the Primary, Lewis noted that six feet of distancing between voters will be recommended when possible, poll workers will be wearing masks and a limited number of gloves will be available for both workers and voters. Disinfectant, cleaning wipes and alcohol wipes for the machines will be on hand at the various polling locations as well.
