May 5, 2020 4 min read

As the May 26 deadline for obtaining a no-excuse absentee ballot approaches, Gov. Tom Wolf urged those who plan to vote using this method not to wait until the last minute.

“I’m going to apply today,” the governor said at a live-streamed press conference Monday afternoon.

“Nearly one million voters have applied to vote by mail, which allows voters to make their choices from the safety of their homes,” he said.

But even if a voter on June 2 lives in an area where residents are ordered to shelter in place, no one can stop those who prefer to cast a ballot in person from carrying out that mission, the governor emphasized, and he encouraged those voting in person to don masks.

“If you go to any place and you’re not wearing a mask, it’s just not a good thing to do,” Wolf said.

Counties have gotten or will be getting kits from the state with supplies for those who are serving as poll workers on the day of the primary. The kits include gloves, masks, disinfectant, hand sanitizer and tape to mark floors to keep people socially distant.

On Wednesday, the Washington County commissioners will also be considering a grant of $101,481 under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which also covers increased equipment, staffing, training and voter education.

“These unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures,” said Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvaar. “We are working with county, state and national partners to enhance in-person voting and vote-by-mail.”

An additional $118,426 on which the commissioners will be voting is related to election security, Commission Chairman Diana Irey Vaughan said Monday.

Polling places that are set up in buildings where the activities have been deemed non-essential can also open on June 2 to conduct the primary, according to the governor.

Those who want to vote by way of a no-excuse mail-in ballot can apply online at www.votespa.com. Those without internet access can call 1-877-VOTES PA.

Of the 960,000 mail-in ballot requests, 20,000 have come from those who called the toll-free phone number.

Washington County had just 1,436 absentee ballots in the Pennsylvania primary of 2016, but the county is approaching a tenfold increase with 13,221 “traditional” absentee ballots – from those who will be away from their precinct on Election Day or who are disabled – no-excuse mail-in ballots and those from members of the military and civilians living overseas.

Wolf signed the no-excuse absentee ballot into law last October. “At the time, we had no idea how important this change would be for the health and safety of elections,” he said Monday. “Even before the pandemic reached Pennsylvania, people were signing up quickly.”

The original date of the primary was April 28, and those who requested absentee or no-excuse mail-in ballots do not have to reapply in light of the date’s change to June 2.

If Southwestern Pennsylvania’s status change from red to yellow had been announced last Friday, some poll workers were willing to serve. But with the status quo still in effect, their ranks are diminishing.

Officials were asked during the press conference Monday if National Guardsmen and women – in plain clothes, not uniform – might bolster local election boards.

“We are working with the guard to see how that could be effectuated,” Boockvaar said.

In response to a question from the Observer-Reporter, Boockvaar said she didn’t think someone who was receiving unemployment compensation would jeopardize his or her benefits by serving on a local election board, which pays about $120 per day in Washington County, but the secretary said she would check with the state Department of Labor and Industry.

Also up in the air is whether county elections offices can begin opening and processing mail-in ballots before 7 a.m. on June 2. The Legislature has yet to weigh in on that.