HARRISBURG – Secretary of the Commonwealth Carol Aichele has reminded Pennsylvanians that Monday, March 26, is the last day to register to vote for the April 24 primary election.
In the primary election, voters will cast ballots for president, U.S. Senate, state attorney general, auditor general, and treasurer, as well as U.S. House of Representatives, state House and Senate, and delegates to the Republican and Democratic national conventions.
“There are many resources available to help citizens register and vote in these important contests,” Aichele said. “Voters can visitwww.VotesPA.com to check their registration status, download a voter registration form and find information on their polling place.”
Applications from Pennsylvanians registering for the first time, changing their address or changing their party affiliation must be postmarked or delivered to the applicant’s county board of elections by the close of business on Monday, March 26.
Voters in this year’s primary will be asked to show photo identification. A photo ID will not be required to vote in the primary, but will be required for all voters in this fall’s general election, to comply with the state’s new voter ID law. This law is designed to make sure all citizens legally entitled to vote can do so, but no one who is not a legal voter can cast a ballot.
Information on the voter ID law is available at www.VotesPA.com, or by calling 1-877-VOTESPA. Any voter who does not have an acceptable form of photo ID can get one at any PennDOT driver license center free of charge.
Individuals must be registered and enrolled in a major political party to vote in that party’s primary. Electors wishing to vote in a party’s primary who are not currently registered with one of the major parties must register by March 26 as either a Democrat or Republican in order to participate in the April 24 primary. However, all registered electors are entitled to vote on ballot questions and in all special elections held concurrently with a primary.
Individuals applying to register to vote for the primary must be:
- A citizen of the United States for at least one month before the primary;
- A resident of Pennsylvania and the election district in which the individual desires to register and vote for at least 30 days before the primary; and
- At least 18 years of age on or before the primary.
Residents may apply in person at a county voter registration office; the state departments of Public Welfare or Health; PennDOT photo and driver license centers; Armed Forces recruitment centers; county clerk of orphan’s courts or marriage license centers; area agencies on aging; county mental health and mental retardation offices; student disability services offices of the State System of Higher Education; offices of special education in high schools; and Americans with Disabilities Act-mandated complimentary paratransit providers.
For more information on voter registration, call the Department of State’s toll-free hotline at 1-877-VOTESPA (1-877-868-3772) or visit www.VotesPA.com.
