Harrisburg, PA – Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt reminded Pennsylvanians today that they can get up-to-the-minute, unofficial results of Tuesday's municipal election on the Department of State's election night returns website. Ensuring that our elections are conducted freely, fairly, and securely – and that every eligible voter can make their voice heard – are top priorities of the Shapiro Administration.
"After the polls close, voters, candidates, and members of the media will be able to find the most complete picture of how Pennsylvanians voted on our election returns site," Schmidt said. "We are working with all 67 counties to make sure we get updated, unofficial results posted and available to the public beginning at 8 p.m. on Nov. 7."
People who visit electionreturns.pa.gov can customize their searches, receive timely updates, view unofficial results on mobile devices, use a location-based service through the "My County" link to instantly bring up their county's election returns, and connect to each county's election results website.
Schmidt noted that Pennsylvania's election laws do not currently allow counties to begin pre-canvassing mail-in and absentee ballots before 7 a.m. on Election Day, so the public must be patient as county elections officials diligently count every eligible vote.
"Giving election workers time to accurately and securely count each vote is our top priority, and so we ask for patience as we await results," Schmidt added.
To date, 931,145 Pennsylvania voters requested a mail-in ballot, and 95,082 voters requested an absentee ballot ahead of the municipal election.
Other voting reminders
Pennsylvanians voting by mail-in or absentee ballot should return their completed ballot as soon as possible. With Election Day less than a week away, Schmidt highly recommends that voters hand-deliver their mail ballot to their county elections office or a drop box site, if possible. The deadline for county boards of elections to receive completed mail ballots is 8 p.m. on Election Day. Completed mail ballots received after that time do not count, even if they are postmarked before the deadline.
Voters may return only their own mail ballot unless the voter has a disability and designates someone in writing to return it for them using the designation form on the Department of State website, or the voter requires an emergency absentee ballot.
Voters also have the option of voting in person at the polls on Nov. 7. Polling places will be open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voters who received an absentee or mail-in ballot may vote in person on Election Day if they bring their unvoted mail ballot packet, including the outer envelope, with them to be voided. After they surrender their ballot packet and sign a declaration, they can then complete and vote a ballot in person.
Voters who requested a mail ballot and did not receive it or do not have it to surrender may vote by provisional ballot at their polling place on Nov. 7. The provisional ballot will be reviewed by their county board of elections after Election Day to ensure that the voter did not successfully vote another ballot.
Voters appearing at a polling place for the first time will need to show proper identification, which may be either photo or non-photo ID.
For more information on voting and elections, visit vote.pa.gov or call the Department of State's year-round hotline, 1-877-VOTESPA (1-877-868-3772), which offers information and interpretation services in more than 200 languages.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Matt Heckel, ra-st-press@pa.gov