Voters in Bucks County might notice something new in the envelopes for mail-in and absentee ballots -- there's a hole in them.
The small hole may look odd, but it's actually intended to make it easier for staff in the county's Board of Elections to ensure that there are fewer "naked ballots" in upcoming elections.
"Naked ballots" are mail-in and absentee ballots that are sent it without an outer security envelope.
The new holes in the outer envelopes, officials said, allow staff to see if the inner envelope -- which is now colored yellow to provide additional visibility -- is where it needs to be.
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This new system, officials said, allows the county to quickly find out if there is a "naked ballot" issue with a mail-in or absentee ballot and ensure voters are notified and given time to fix the issue.
The county said that, due to state law, ballots can't be opened before 7 a.m. on Election Day, which has meant that, previously, "naked ballots" could go undetected until counting had begun and it could be too late to remedy any issues.
Bucks County officials said that, in the past elections, because of issues with 'naked ballots,' 225 voted needed to be tossed out of the primaries and another 492 were culled from the general election.
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In fact, the county said that, by far, “naked” ballots accounted for the largest number of otherwise properly received ballots that were rejected last year.
Officials have said that mail-in and absentee ballots for the upcoming municipal primary election are expected to start arriving in county residents’ mailboxes sometime within the next few weeks.
