Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar today announced a refresh of the Pennsylvania Department of State’s display of election-returns data, including an update to the Department’s website cataloging votes cast by mail and in person, as well as the creation of a supplemental dashboard to show the progress of ballots cast that have not yet been counted, broken down by county.
“Voters, candidates and the press can find the earliest and most complete picture of the unofficial results of the general election on our website, while tracking the progress of the counting in all 67 counties on our dashboard” Secretary Boockvar said. “We will collaborate with all county election offices to consolidate and post their results as soon as they are available, including itemized results of mail ballots, in-person votes at polling places, and provisional ballots, and display how many ballots and precincts remain to be counted beginning at 8 p.m. on election night.”
The department’s vote-counting dashboard will offer frequent updates on the progress of mail-and absentee ballot canvassing, as well as precincts completed and provisional ballots fully counted or partially counted.
Visitors to votesPA.com/Counting will be able to see the total number of mail ballots that have been cast and counted as those numbers are reported by the counties. The dashboard will also display the number and percentage of precincts for which polling place voting results have been reported by the counties. In the days after the election, data on provisional ballot counts will be available.
Results will be posted on the main election-returns site as the department receives reports from the counties after the polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day. Until then, the site will only show test data. A demo of the dashboard is available on the Department of State website.
On November 3, voters will elect the President and Vice President of the United States; U.S. Representatives; the State Attorney General, Auditor General and Treasurer; State Representatives; and State Senators in odd-numbered districts.
Polls will be open on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters who plan to vote in-person can find their polling placeon votesPA.com.
Voters who requested a mail ballot must return their ballot by 8 p.m. on Election Day using one of the following options:
- Drop off your ballot at your county election office
- Find out if your county has drop boxes. If so, voters can deliver their ballots there
- Find out if your county has a satellite election officewhere you can drop off your ballot. Several counties have extended hours, including evenings and weekends to accommodate voters.
Voters who applied for and received a mail ballot and then decide they want to vote at the polls must bring at least the larger declaration envelope and their ballot with them to be voided. They may then vote on their county’s voting system.
If a voter applies for a mail ballot but does not return it and no longer has the mail ballot and envelopes, they may vote by provisional ballot at the polls on election day. Their county board of elections will then verify that they did not vote by mail before counting their provisional ballot.
Additionally, if a voter’s absentee or mail‐in ballot is rejected for a reason other than their qualification or eligibility to vote, such as a missing signature or naked ballot, they may vote by provisional ballot at their polling place.
Voters who plan to vote at their polling place on election day should wear a mask and follow social distancing guidelines. The Department of State is supplying counties with masks, face shields, hand sanitizer, floor marking tape for social distancing and other supplies for polling places so Pennsylvanians can safely exercise their right to vote during the COVID-19 emergency.
For more information on voting and elections, visit votesPA.com or call the Department of State’s toll-free hotline at 1-877-VOTESPA (1-877-868-3772). Interpreters are available.