Monday is the deadline to ensure you are registered to vote in November’s election in Pennsylvania. There is a voter registration drive in Philadelphia in a last-moments registration push.
Heads up, Pennsylvania residents 18 and older! The deadline to register to vote in order to cast a ballot in next month's election is today, Oct. 18, 2021.
Eligible residents can submit a paper registration application to county election offices before they close for the evening, or through the state's online registration portal through 11:59 p.m.
At the top of statewide ballots, there is a state Supreme Court seat open for which a Democrat and Republican are running to replace a retiring justice. Further down the ballot, there are important local races in many places including school boards, municipal councils and referendums. In Philadelphia, District Attorney Larry Krasner and City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart are up for re-election.
Pennsylvania Secretary of State Veronica Degraffenreid told NBC10 in an interview that all eligible voters are urged to check out the state's online resources at vote.pa.gov, where there is all the information voters need to find out about registering and applying for a mail-in ballot if they choose to.
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"It's so important to go ahead and give those requests now so that the counties can process the applications and send voters their ballot," Degraffenreid said. "Over 920,000 voters have already requested a mail-in ballot for purposes of the upcoming election."
You are eligible to vote in Pennsylvania if you are:
- A United States citizen for at least 30 days before Election Day
- At least 18 years old on Election Day
- A resident of your current address for 30 days before the election
If you are not sure if you are registered to vote, you can check your voter status at THIS LINK on Pennsylvania's Voter Portal.
The deadline for registered voters to apply for mail-in ballots through the mail is 5 p.m., Oct. 26. That is when the application must be received by your county election office. You can submit those ballots through the U.S. Postal Service or in-person at a mail-in dropbox or at your county election office by 8 p.m. on Election Day. Here is more information about dropbox locations.
Every polling place in Pennsylvania will be open on Election Day, Nov. 2, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Degraffenreid implored all voters using mail-in ballots to carefully read and follow the instructions for correctly submitting the ballot.
"Pay attention to the instructions that are enclosed with the balloting materials," she said. "It's so important that once you finish marking your ballot that you seal your ballot in the secrecy envelope. And then the secrecy envelope with the ballot in clothes must be placed inside a declaration return envelope, and that declaration envelope must be signed and dated. Put the date that you're signing it on the envelope. It is so, so important to pay attention to the instructions."
