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INFLUX OF NEW PA VOTERS RAISES CONCERNS ABOUT POLLING PLACE PROBLEMS
Committee of Seventy Issues Reminder about Required Voter Identification
PHILADELPHIA – April 17, 2008 – The Committee of Seventy, which conducts the nation’s oldest and largest local non-partisan local voter protection program, today urged all media outlets to remind new voters, and individuals voting for the first time in a new division, of the need to produce identification at the polls for the April 22nd Pennsylvania primary. As of March 31st, one week following the March 24th primary election voter registration deadline, the Pennsylvania Department of State reported over 200,000 new voters statewide since November 2007, including nearly 114,000 in Philadelphia. Identification is not required for returning voters.
“The tension level is rising as the primary gets closer. New voters in particular, many of whom are participating in their first presidential election, are nervous about going to the polls,” said Zachary Stalberg, Seventy’s President and CEO. “There are three easy steps that all voters need to follow: First is to figure out the location of their polling place. Second is to decide which candidates and ballot questions to vote for. Third is to see if you fall into the category of voters who need to bring identification to the polls.” Stalberg said that voters can locate their polling places by going to Seventy’s Citizen Access Center (over the Internet at http://seventy.org/cac or by telephone at 1-866-268-8603). Seventy’s website – www.seventy.org – also features sample ballots for all the City’s House districts and information on Philadelphia’s two proposed ballot questions.
Pennsylvania requires all individuals voting at a polling place for the first time – either because they are new voters or newly located within a district – to produce one of the following photo identifications:
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Identification issued by the U.S. government;
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U.S. Passport;
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U.S. Armed Forces Identification;
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Student Identification; or
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Employee Identification
Voters can also produce any of the following non-photo identifications as long as they include their name and address:
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Voter identification card issued by the Voter Registration Commission;
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Non-photo identification issued by the Commonwealth;
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Non-photo identification issued by the U.S. Government;
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Firearm permit;
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Current utility bill;
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Current bank statement;
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Current paycheck; or
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Government check.
Voters without a proper form of identification are not automatically precluded from voting. The Philadelphia Board of Elections gives each division’s polling place 75 provisional ballots for properly registered and eligible voters to be used if:
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Their names do not appear on the district register (poll book) and election officials cannot determine their registration status;
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They don’t have any identification, even if their name appears in the poll book;
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An election official questions their right to vote. (This can happen, for example, if the poll book indicates a voter is a registered Republican but the voter says he or she is registered as a Democrat); or
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Both voting machines in a division break down. If at least one machine is operable, the official policy of the Philadelphia Board of Elections is that voters must use that machine rather than be given a provisional ballot.
Voters are required to vote by provisional ballot if they are doing so as a result of a federal or court order, or an order extending the time established for closing the polls by State law that is in effect ten (10) days before an election.
After April 29th, primary voters can call 1-877-VOTESPA to find out if their provisional ballot is valid and their vote counted. Voters need to save their provisional ballot identification number, which will be given to them by a polling place official, in order to receive this information.
The Committee of Seventy is a non-partisan organization conducting a permanent campaign to improve the Philadelphia region by demanding ethical conduct of public officials, safeguarding elections, promoting government efficiency and educating citizens.
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