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https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/30/us/pennsylvania-mail-in-ballots.html
Pennsylvania’s two most populous counties cannot throw out otherwise timely and eligible mail-in ballots because they are undated or do not have the correct date on the outer envelope, a state court ruled on Friday.
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, siding with voter advocacy groups, found that tossing ballots because they did not comport with a 2019 law requiring voters to date and sign the outer envelope would violate a State Constitution clause guaranteeing “free and equal elections” and pose a “substantial threat of disenfranchisement.”
The ruling could play a critical role in November in the battleground state, which polls now show to be a tossup between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump. Election officials disqualified nearly 16,000 mail-in ballots for irregularities during April’s primary election. Almost half were disqualified because of issues like missing signatures and wrong dates on outer envelopes.
The ruling applies only to Philadelphia and Allegheny Counties. Whether it will extend across the state will most likely depend on county officials and guidance from the office of the secretary of the commonwealth, who leads Pennsylvania’s Department of State.
Pennsylvania’s two most populous counties cannot throw out otherwise timely and eligible mail-in ballots because they are undated or do not have the correct date on the outer envelope, a state court ruled on Friday.
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, siding with voter advocacy groups, found that tossing ballots because they did not comport with a 2019 law requiring voters to date and sign the outer envelope would violate a State Constitution clause guaranteeing “free and equal elections” and pose a “substantial threat of disenfranchisement.”
The ruling could play a critical role in November in the battleground state, which polls now show to be a tossup between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump. Election officials disqualified nearly 16,000 mail-in ballots for irregularities during April’s primary election. Almost half were disqualified because of issues like missing signatures and wrong dates on outer envelopes.
The ruling applies only to Philadelphia and Allegheny Counties. Whether it will extend across the state will most likely depend on county officials and guidance from the office of the secretary of the commonwealth, who leads Pennsylvania’s Department of State.
