Billy Penn at WHYY

Register to vote and apply for a mail ballot ahead of the May primary election

Love Philly? So do we. Let’s be friends. Sign up for the Billy Penn newsletter today. Pennsylvania’s primary elections are coming up in a little more than a month, which means it’s time to make sure you’re registered to vote, request a mail ballot if you want one, and — if you haven’t already — start thinking about who you’re going to vote for.  The primary will be held May 19, and the registration deadline is May 4. Registered Democrats and Republicans can vote for their party’s nominees, while unaffiliated and independent voters may only vote on ballot questions. In Philadelphia, the most closely watched race is the Democratic primary to succeed retiring Congressman Dwight Evans in the 3rd Congressional District. Since there’s no Republican running, the primary will likely decide who wins the November general election. Also on the ballot are mostly uncontested party primaries for governor, other congressional seats, and all state Assembly seats, as well as races for Democratic and Republican state committee members and local party ward committees. Philadelphia voters will see one ballot question. Here’s the full list of candidates on the City Commissioners’ website. We’re still working on our Procrastinator’s Guide to the candidates, so stay tuned for that to come out about a week before the election.  Registration cut-off coming up The deadline to register to vote in time for the upcoming primary is Monday, May 4.  Check your registration status by calling the City Commissioners at 215-686-1590 or looking it up at the Pa. Department of State website. You can register online at the state voter services page. Or, you can register in person at the Board of Elections office in City Hall, Room 140; at the Voter Registration Office at 520 N. Columbus Blvd, at Spring Garden Street; or at one of the city’s 10 satellite election offices.  Those offices are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends. You can also pick up a voter registration application at post offices, public libraries, state liquor stores, and state government offices. You can call the commissioners and ask them to mail you one, or print out the application form at home. It’s available in several languages. Just make sure to mail it back in time to make the May 4 deadline.  Another option is registering at a PennDOT photo license center when you get or update your driver’s license. For more on how to register, including information for people with criminal records, check out the City Commissioners’ registration page. Voting by mail (or absentee) Any registered voter can vote by mail. The deadline to apply for a mail ballot is Tuesday, May 12, at 5 p.m.  You can apply at the City Hall or Columbus Boulevard elections offices, or any of the satellite election offices mentioned above.  Ballots have not been printed yet. Once they’re available, you’ll be able to go to an election office in person, apply for a mail ballot, fill it out, and return it on the spot — all in one visit. (And register first, if needed.) Another option is to fill out an online application to have a ballot mailed to your home. You cannot drop off a mail ballot at a polling place. It must be returned by mail, or dropped off at an election office or a designated dropbox. An absentee ballot is different from a regular mail ballot. It’s principally for people who will be out of town on Primary Election Day, or who have an illness or physical disability that prevents them from going to the polls. Members of the armed forces and people with religious obligations also qualify. You have to provide a valid reason to receive one. You can find instructions for applying for an absentee ballot on the city’s website. For more information on how to apply for, fill out, and submit a mail or absentee ballot, and deal with various special situations — e.g., if you change your mind at the last minute and decide to vote in person instead — check out our comprehensive explainer from a couple years ago or the City Commissioners’ guide. Meet that deadline! The Board of Elections must receive your completed ballot by 8 p.m. on Primary Day, May 19, or it won’t count. So make sure to mail it in at least several days before then, or deposit it in an official drop box. Here’s a searchable map of the drop boxes.  Note that people who vote by mail are required to write down the date that they filled out the ballot, in a designated space on the back of the ballot envelope. If they don’t, their ballot could be thrown out without being counted. That requirement has been the subject of years of litigation. A federal court ruled last August that the requirement is unconstitutional, and the state Supreme Court heard arguments on the issue in September. The Republican National Committee and a group of states have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate the requirement. In the meantime, voters are still being asked to hand-write the date on the envelope. When we get closer to the election, we’ll publish a list of people whose mail ballots are flawed for reasons like a missing hand-written date or security envelope, and we’ll explain how to fix those problems and make those votes count. Meanwhile, if you’re planning to kick it old school and vote in person on Primary Election Day, here’s a ton of useful info from the City Commissioners, including a searchable map of polling places. Once sample ballots with candidate names are available, they’ll be available at that site as well. 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