Since the 2020 election, when Trump and his MAGA cronies (including many in the Pennsylvania Legislature) spread false claims about election fraud, Republican-led state legislatures have passed a whole host of legislation that restricts voting under the guise of “promoting election integrity.” Changes to election laws such as tightening restrictions on mail and absentee voting, requiring additional documentation to vote, disallowing automatic voter registration and limiting the number of polling places and mail-in drop boxes have clearly made voting more difficult for many Americans. Don’t be fooled by the rhetoric – this is exactly what the GOP wants!
With a Democratic Governor and a one-person Democrat majority in the PA House, our state has managed to avoid the most egregious of the GOP’s voting suppression tactics. Nonetheless, voting in Pennsylvania is not as easy as it could be. In fact, according to a recent study of state election laws, Pennsylvania ranks only 32 out of 50 with regard to the ease of voting.
States with the fewest obstacles to voting, such as Oregon (ranked #1), have instituted things like mailing out ballots to every registered voter in their state, and providing automatic “opt-out” voter registration at many state agencies. It’s not quite as easy in PA where voters need to request mail-in ballots and complete an application process online. And although automatic voter registration recently became available in PA, currently this service is only available at the DMV when applying for or renewing a driver’s license. This change was implemented last year thanks to Gov. Shapiro who was able to get it done administratively, much to the chagrin of PA Republicans who would never have let any legislation proposing automatic voter registration see the light of day.
Voting in Pennsylvania is more difficult for some than it is for others. This is because county election officials interpret the state’s outdated election laws differently, particularly with regard to mail ballots with technical errors. The state Supreme Court ruled that fixing flawed mail ballots after they’re turned in (known as “ballot curing”) was allowed but not mandated. In past elections, this has led to voters in some counties, like Philadelphia, being notified if they make a minor mistake on their mail ballot packet and allowed to fix it, while voters in Lancaster County making the same mistake would not be told and their ballots would be rejected.
The availability of drop boxes also varies county by county. In 40 counties, mostly in rural areas, drop boxes are not available, forcing residents to drive farther to reach a county election office. Some counties have only one drop box available while other counties, like Philadelphia and those surrounding it, have several.
While Republicans in the state are deluging the courts with anti-democratic election lawsuits, Democrats lawmakers are trying to clarify some of the state’s antiquated election regulations. Under current state law, counties can’t process mail and absentee ballots until the morning of Election Day, which prolongs the time frame for tallying the final vote. In 2020, Trump and his MAGA cronies used the delayed vote count to support their false claims of voter fraud. To rectify this for the upcoming election, Democrats in the House passed HB 847 this past May. The legislation allows counties to process mail-in and absentee ballots up to seven days before an election. Not surprisingly, this bill has languished in the Senate, which is still controlled by Republicans.
This is why we need to flip the PA Legislature from Red to Blue this November. If Republicans remain in control of the state Senate, and we cannot maintain our Democratic majority in the House, voter suppression efforts will continue.
Represent PA invests in strong women incumbents and first-time candidates for PA’s State Legislature who oppose the GOP’s anti-democratic agenda and want to see voter access and voter rights expanded. Join us in this effort.
- Karen Gelman – Represent PA Volunteer
