Harrisburg, PA – Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt announced today that counties using redesigned provisional ballot envelopes in the November 2025 election saw an 11.3% decrease in the number of provisional ballots that were rejected for envelope errors compared with the November 2024 election.
The envelopes for provisional ballots now clearly identify which fields voters must fill out, including highlighting the two places where the voter must sign. The envelopes also clearly mark which fields election workers are to fill out. This update, which was a collaborative effort with elections officials in five counties, continues the Shapiro Administration’s commitment to strengthening our democracy and keeping Pennsylvania’s elections safe and secure.
“Our goal remains ensuring every registered voter in our Commonwealth can cast their vote and have it counted in every election,” Schmidt said. “As with the changes to mail ballot materials two years ago, these improvements resulted in more registered voters being able to make their voices heard in November’s election.”
Thanks to the Shapiro Administration’s improvement, 4.40% of provisional ballots were rejected for envelope errors during the November 2025 election, a decrease compared to the 4.96% rejection rate during the November 2024 cycle. After adjusting for voter turnout, an analysis comparing the number of provisional ballots rejected in each election showed that 11.3% fewer ballots were rejected for incomplete information on envelopes in 2025.
Before the July announcement of the redesigned envelope, the Department received feedback from county election officials in Philadelphia, Berks, Butler, Mercer, and Greene counties, who had all highlighted the need for a more user-friendly envelope design for both voters and poll workers.
“The purpose in leading the redesign effort was to reduce errors and have more votes counted, which is exactly what we achieved,” said Omar Sabir, Chairman of the Philadelphia City Commissioners. “An 11% decrease in ballot rejections shows the real impact that thoughtful design can have on protecting voting rights across Pennsylvania. We’re proud to have partnered with the Department of State and election officials across the Commonwealth to ensure that more voters are able to make their voices heard.”
For more information on voting in Pennsylvania, including mail and provisional ballots, visit vote.pa.gov, call the Department of State’s year-round voter hotline at 1-877-VOTESPA, or follow #ReadytoVotePA on social media.
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About the data: The Department’s analysis included data from 57 counties. It did not include the nine counties that did not use the redesigned envelopes – Bedford, Bradford, Crawford, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lackawanna, Lycoming, Monroe, and Wyoming – or Chester County because of a 2025 Election Day poll books issue there that led to the use of an unusually high number of provisional ballots.