Officials taking steps for primary election
Officials are attempting to determine what role the pandemic will have on staffing levels at the polls.
WEST CHESTER » In advance of June’s primary election, Chester County officials are attempting to determine what role the coronavirus pandemic will have on staffing levels at the county’s 228 precincts, and what steps to avoid falling short of election personnel that day.
Because many poll workers tend to fit into the demographic of high-risk for infection individuals — older residents, who may have underlying health issues that would make them more susceptible to the virus — those officials are concerned the county might see a drop in the number of available poll workers.
It is a problem that is being considered across the state, after Gov. Tom Wolf ordered the April 28 primary that was to have taken place last Tuesday to June 2. Election officials worry that the more the virus lingers as a threat, the more those who play necessary roles at the polling places may decide to sit Election Day out rather than risk exposure.
The county has already had to cancel training sessions for new and returning poll workers because of the coronavirus scare. Those sessions, originally set for March 13, have not as yet been rescheduled.
The most obvious, though not preferred, solution to the possibility that individual precincts — those church multi-purpose rooms, public school gymnasiums, fire halls, and other public buildings — might be understaffed is a plan for consolidation.
The law that Wolf signed moving the date of the election — in which national and state offices will be on the ballot, including the presidential primary — allows counties to consolidate up to 60 percent of polling places, closing one or more and combining them with another. Under the new rules, counties must consolidate polling places no later than 20 days prior to the primary election.
The concern is that such consolidation may disenfranchise or confuse some voters and lead to a larger “no-show” on Election Day than is normal in primaries.
According to a statement released by the county last week, staff at the county’s Office of Voter Services have been contacting election officials at all precincts to determine the status of opening for the primary. To date, many have confirmed that the precinct will be open and staffed. Based on the conversations with all precincts, Voter Services is currently determining where there are opportunities for consolidation of polling places, based on staffing and availability of locations, according to the statement. But no decisions have yet been made.
Sandra Burke, the county’s director of Voters Services, was not available for comment last week.
The leaders of the county’s two major political parties also weighed in on the matter last week.
“We have been working through contingency planning within the Republican Party and the country Voter Services department,” said GOP Chairman Rick Loughery. “Changes for this primary are inevitable; for example, it would be unwise to have voters go to polling places in senior care facilities.
“We are advocating for polling location changes to ensure safety, in the least disruptive manner, and that those changes are made in a transparent manner that gives us the most time to educate voters about those changes,” Loughery said.
Echoed Dick Bingham, the head of the Chester County Democratic Committee, “there will be some polling place changes for sure and we probably will not know specifics until sometime next week. The biggest challenge will be notifying voters about any changes affecting them. It will be a scramble.
“I do know that Voter Services is working very hard on finalizing polling locations,” he added. “The Chester County Democratic Party will do everything we can to help communicate any changes once the decisions have been finalized. The last thing we want is to disenfranchise any voter, which is one reason we are continuing to push hard on the Vote By Mail option.”
Democrats nationally have been pushing for expansion of the option for voters to be able to receive a ballot before the election takes place, fill it out at home, and send it in, without the excuses need for a traditional absentee ballot — such as illness or being out of the county on election day. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have been less enthusiastic, citing the greater potential for voter fraud.
Pennsylvania passed legislation allowing the mailin option beginning this year.
Commented Loughery, “prior to the pandemic, the General Assembly took deliberative steps to incorporate a new mail-in vote option in Pennsylvania. That option is available to anyone who feels as if they need to use it. We are encouraging people to use it in this primary election. However, it should not be forced upon anyone who does not choose to vote in that manner and in-person voting should be made available.”
According to Voter Services, there have already been more than 35,000 requests for mail-in ballots this year, with 1,542 returned. The number of mail-in, absentee, military and overseas ballots overall is 44,381, a total of 2,718 having been returned. There are more than 357,000 registered voters in the county.
In addition to studying the consolidation issue, the county has been preparing for an Election Day under the threat of a virus with protective equipment and materials.
Back in February, Voter Services reviewed the Centers for Disease Control’s recommendations for preventing the spread of COVID-19 in election polling places, and ordered hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes that would be delivered to all polling places, all of which have all have arrived, the county said. Voter Services also reached out to ES&S, Chester County’s voting machine manufacturer, to determine the best type of disinfectant product or products that can be used to clean the voting machines.
The relevant supplies were ordered, have arrived and will be sent out to each polling place, a county spokeswoman said. Voting officials also ensured there are hand washing facilities for poll workers at all polling places.
Since then, Voter Services has continued to consult with the Chester County Health Department on recommended Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) needs for both poll workers and the voting public. In addition to the PPE supplies ordered back in February for all precincts, the county will be receiving 151 PPE kits from the Department of State, with the county supplementing that with an additional 25 of the same kits.
As another precaution, Chester County also just ordered two plexiglass shields for every precinct. This will create a barrier for poll workers to have voters sign poll books and receive ballots behind the shields.