Pennsylvania Must Allow Only Absentee and Mail-In Ballot Voting in the April Primary

The COVID-19 virus constitutes a health emergency rarely seen in public life. Both because of the danger to the public at large and even more so to the poll workers, Pennsylvania must mandate that all voting in the Pennsylvania primary on Tuesday, April 28, 2020 be by absentee ballot and mail-in ballot only. This would be an unprecedented event in the history of Pennsylvania elections, but it is lawful and appropriate for this election.

Last year, for reasons unrelated to the current health crisis, Pennsylvania enacted a number of changes to the law governing elections. One of the most important was to create the mail-in ballot. Until the change in the law, if a voter wanted to get an absentee ballot, the voter would have to state on the application that a health issue prevented the voter from voting in person or that the voter would be outside of the voter’s jurisdiction on Election Day. Under the new law, a voter can request a mail-in ballot without a specific cause. This allows people to vote without having to go to the polling place on Election Day. Absentee and mail-in ballot applications for the April 28, 2020, primary election must be received by the voter’s county election office by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. Information about absentee ballots and mail-in ballots, and applications for them, can be obtained from the Department of State’s website at https://www.votespa.com/Voting-in-PA/Pages/Mail-and-Absentee-Ballot.aspx