Tuesday, April 16, was the last day for voters across the state to request a mail-in ballot. With the deadline for mail-in voting right around the corner, some people might be worried about when their ballots will arrive.
Lebanon County Bureau of Elections officials say that while the delivery time varies between neighborhoods, most ballots should be delivered within three to five business days. However, some voters who requested late ballots may not receive their ballots until Monday.
“This means there is NO WAY for them to mail them back and have them arrive in time,” Sean D. Drasher, director of elections for Lebanon County, said in a press release Thursday.
Proof of a postmark on returned ballots won’t help, Drasher said, noting the Bureau of Elections must have all ballots physically in hand by 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, which is primary election day in Pennsylvania this year.
“Unfortunately, this means that a lot of the people across the State who are having their ballots delivered at this point MUST PHYSICALLY RETURN THEM TO US instead of dropping them in the mail,” he wrote in the release. “Please pass along the warning. I want all those votes counted!!!!”
Voters can return their ballots “by whatever legal channels they want,” Drasher said, which includes dropping them off at any legal drop box or by bringing them into their voter offices.
Earlier this month, the county installed a satellite voter registration office just south of the rear entrance of the county municipal building on South 8th Street in Lebanon. Mail and absentee election ballots can be delivered by voters to that location from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, although on Tuesday, the satellite office will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., the same hours that the polls are open.
Read More: Local voters return mail-in, absentee ballots on 1st day of new satellite office
Keep in mind, under state law, voters must return their own ballots. Voters with a disability who have designated someone in writing to deliver their ballot are the only exception.
For more information on voting, visit the Lebanon County Bureau of Elections website.
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