Mail-In Voting Favored, But Montco Readies For In-Person Election

NORRISTOWN, PA — While Montgomery County has appealed to the state to move to mail-in voting only for the upcoming Pennsylvania primary due to the coronavirus outbreak, there is no longer a possibility of that happening, officials confirmed Thursday.

In the meantime, the county has turned its efforts toward preparing a limited number of new polling sites, while encouraging all residents to voluntarily vote by mail.

A mail-in ballot can be requested online here at VotesPa.com. The deadline to apply is May 26.

Weeks ago, Montgomery County Commissioners Val Arkoosh and Ken Lawrence sent a letter to state officials asking them to make mail-in voting for the primary in the county mandatory. Their plan included a few sites for in-person voting that would remain open to individuals with disabilities.

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"I don't want to say it was rejected, but it would require legislation to effect that change, and that is just not in the cards," Arkoosh said in a news conference Thursday.

The county is now preparing a small number of election sites, many of them new. Many traditional election sites are in senior homes, so it's likely that if residents do choose to vote in-person, their polling place will be somewhere they've never voted before. Arkoosh urged those voters to keep a close eye on their mail for updates.

Extensive safety preparations are being made for those who choose to vote in person.

The new polling sites will have socially distant lines, and kits on hand for all volunteers includings hand santizers, masks, gloves, and wipes to routinely clean all high-touch surfaces.

"These are the cards we've been dealt, so we will do the best we can to create as many safe locations as possible," Arkoosh said.

The outbreak has led a large number poll workers to decline to volunteer. Many volunteers are older and are at high risk for coronavirus complications, and would be exposing themselves if they have to come out to work the polls on election day.

The issue has become an virulently partisan one, with President Trump and many Republicans arguing that mail-in voting opens up elections to fraud and abuse. Commissioner Joe Gale refused to sign the letter which Arkoosh and Lawrence sent to the state, citing that he "stands with the President."

"Every registered voter deserves the right to cast their ballot privately, in person, on Election Day, without fear of their ballot being lost or manipulated," Gale said during a meeting of the Commissioners on April 16.

Last month, Gov. Wolf pushed back the primary election in Pennsylvania from April 28 to June 2.

This Saturday, 24 poll workers in Montgomery County will gather in a large, 25,000 square foot warehouse to begin assembling voter scanners for the election.

"Their health and safety is paramount," Lawrence said, adding that the individuals will be working in a socially distant manner, will have their temperatures taken, and will be provided masks and gloves.

Montgomery County has seen a total of 3,212 cases and 179 deaths since the outbreak was first tracked in the county on March 7.

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