Mail-in ballot requests plummet in Philadelphia
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Philadelphia voters will cast significantly fewer mail-in ballots this presidential election than in 2020, when the option was expanded in the midst of the COVID pandemic.
Why it matters: More voters casting ballots in person, plus other factors, could help elections officials tabulate results faster come Nov. 5 — and potentially avoid a repeat of Pennsylvania's dayslong delay four years ago.
Driving the news: Nearly 205,500 Philly voters have requested mail-in ballots for this election as of Friday, per data from the city commissioners.
- While that number will climb before Tuesday's 5pm mail-in ballot application deadline, it's tracking well behind the nearly 437,200 total mail-in ballots requested in 2020.
Zoom out: Participation in mail-in voting has trended downward across Pennsylvania.
- As of Oct. 22, nearly 1.9 million voters have requested mail-in ballots, compared to more than 2.8 million by the same time in 2020, per the Inquirer.
In Philly, mail-in votes have declined from around 50% of the overall vote in 2020 to approximately 30%, City Commissioner Lisa Deeley tells Axios.
Between the lines: Under state law, election offices can't begin opening mail-in ballots until 7am on Election Day.
- The tabulation of mail ballots doesn't begin until after polls close and is a time-consuming process.
- Plus: Machines can only process so many mail ballots per hour.
What else: Other changes will help Philly's election officials tabulate results faster than in 2020.
- All mail-in ballots must be received by 8pm on Election Day. Whereas four years ago, mail-in ballots were accepted up to three days after.
Plus: The use of electronic poll books, which voters sign into at the polls, will also allow Philly election officials to more quickly ensure no in-person voters also cast ballots by mail.
- In 2020, Philly used paper poll books to compare in-person and mail-in ballots, which was a time-consuming process.
What they're saying: An extremely tight race could still drag out the final result, Deeley says.
- "The whole process will be faster, but how long it'll take them to call the race will be contingent upon the status of the contest."