ELECTION LATEST NEWS!!
South Kensington Community Partners
Prepare (and brace yourself) for Election Week
The 2020 election is about to begin. Be prepared…
Committee of Seventy (C70)
=First, make sure you’re registered: Check your registration, and if you need to register, do so online. The deadline is Oct. 19.
=Request a mail-in ballot: Apply online by October 27, but don’t delay—and return your ballot as soon as possible after you receive it.
=BYOBallot: Build your own ballot with C70’s nonpartisan PA Voter Guide. Type in your address and you’ll find information about all the candidates and questions on your ballot. Select your choices, print it out and bring it with you to the polls.
=If you’re going to the polls: The Philadelphia City Commissioners updated their polling place list last week. They have now assigned locations to 880 divisions, more than half of the city’s total of 1703. Almost all (94%) are the same as in 2019. They promise a complete list 20 days before the election. PA voters outside Philly can find their polling places (and find demonstration videos of their new voting machines) at VotesPA.com.
=Questions? We have answers in our Voting & Election Myths + FAQs. And find out everything you need to know about voting in 2020 with C70s’ WeVote site.
VIDEO: Everything you need to know about voting by mail in Pennsylvania
Kristen Balderas, Raishad Hardnett, Lauren Schneiderman, Astrid Rodrigues, Philadelphia Inquirer.
In the 2020 presidential election, Pennsylvanians can vote by mail for the first time. Our data and democracy reporter, Jonathan Lai, can help you through it. And check out our How To Vote guide for everything you need to know about voting in Pennsylvania in 2020.
View video here.
PA Supreme Court decision allowing drop boxes and a postmark deadline for accepting mail-in ballots also confirmed the requirement that voters enclose those ballots in the “secrecy envelope” provided in the ballot packets they receive.
Philly elections chief warns of ‘electoral chaos’ from Pa. Supreme Court ruling on ‘naked ballots’
Jonathan Lai, Philadelphia Inquirer
The state Supreme Court ordered elections officials to throw out what’s known as “naked ballots” — mail ballots that arrive without inner “secrecy envelopes.”
Read here.
Pennsylvania: Mail ballots can’t be discarded over signature
Marc Levy, APNews.
With concerns rising in Pennsylvania that tens of thousands of mail-in ballots will be discarded in the presidential election over technicalities, officials in the presidential battleground told counties they aren’t allowed to reject a ballot solely because an election official believes a signature doesn’t match the one in the voter’s file.
Read here.
Poll Workers Wanted!
Poll workers are key to any efficient election and we need your help recruiting people to be poll workers.
[#PhillyCounts]
What: Sign up to be a poll worker on election day.
Who: Anyone who is 18 years old and registered to vote can be a poll worker.
When: Tuesday, November 3rd from 6:00am until the ballots are picked up at the end of the night.
Where: Polling locations will be assigned by the City Commissioners office
Why: Poll workers are essential to an efficient election. You can help make sure everyone can vote quickly and easily on election day.
How: Sign up online and share on social media.