Most, but not all, polls open for primary

Although a majority of polling places in Chester County will be open “as is” for voters in the coming June 2 Primary Election, a significant number of others have seen difficulties related to the novel coronavirus outbreak that have necessitated some closures and relocations.

That does not mean, however, that voters in those precincts will not be allowed to cast their ballots.

According to county officials, the problems include insufficient poll workers to handle the routine tasks that occupy the staff on Election Day because of fears of infection from the virus, and unavailability of facilities that had been used in the past, such as long-term care facilities, because of the state’s “shut down” order.

“There are some COVID issues,” commissioners Chairwoman Marian Moskowitz said during a commissioners meeting Thursday.

According to the county Office of Voter Services, even though the current directive by Gov. Tom Wolf is for the county to remain in the red “stay at home” phase related to COVID-19, that action will not alter the process of voting on Election Day.

“Voting is considered an essential activity that will take place even with a ‘stay at home’ order, and the poll workers and polling

locations for each precinct in Chester County are undertaking an essential service,” a statement by the office read.

The county is providing the maximum level of personal protection equipment for workers and voters at every precinct, to ensure the safety of both poll workers and the members of the public who are exercising their right to vote. The personal protection equipment includes masks, gloves and sanitation kits for poll workers, procedures to maintain social distancing while signingin and while voting, and Plexiglas shields to protect both workers and voters.

Staff in Chester County’s Department of Voter Services contacted all precincts to determine the status of opening for election day, and the majority confirmed that the precinct will be open and staffed. Based on the feedback from all precincts, Voter Services determined where there were opportunities for consolidation of some polling places, based on staffing and availability of locations.

According to Moskowitz, of the county’s 230 precincts, 159 remain “as is,” open and unchanged. That amounts to about 69 percent of all polling places she said.

Of the remaining 71 precincts, about half are not changing location, but are being joined by other precincts. The list of polling places for the primary will be available on the county website, www.chesco.org, on Monday, May 18.

Commissioner Michelle Kichline, the board’s lone Republican, noted that Voter Services had reached out to representatives of both the county’s major political parties to get input for its decisions on which precincts to close and where to relocate them.

Meanwhile, the state’s new “vote by mail” process will allow those who are concerned with forming lines and voting in the primary or would have to travel to another precinct than their normal voting locations to cast a ballot without leaving home.

Thousands of registered voters appear ready to take advantage of the new system, according to county figures cited by Moskowitz.

As of Wednesday, May 13, 66,278 mail-in and absentee ballots applications have been processed, and of those, 65,217 ballots have been sent back to those who applied. Voters have returned more than 17,500 completed ballots so far.

The county, however, clarified the process by which “vote by mail” is conducted.

If someone applies for a ballot and Voter Services has recorded that a ballot has been sent, during the Primary Election if they choose not to use it and instead vote at a precinct, or did not receive the ballot although Voter Services has recorded that a ballot was sent, and therefore wants to vote at a precinct, by state law the voter must use a provisional ballot at the precinct.

The provisional ballot records a vote, and is then reviewed by the county to determine whether it can be counted, or is a duplicate.

Of the county’s 230 precincts, 159 remain “as is,” open and unchanged. That amounts to about 69 percent of all polling places.