DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Voters in a Philadelphia suburb heavily courted by presidential candidates had their last chance Friday to request a mail-in ballot.
A court set a 5 p.m. deadline for voters in Bucks County to request and receive a mail-in ballot.
The deadline is a three-day extension granted following a lawsuit alleging voters were disenfranchised when they were turned away by the county offices processing the application. The suit was filed by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign, the Republican National Committee and Republican Senate candidate David McCormick.
The deadlines and office closures led to long lines and confusion among some voters, who believed that, as at polling places on Election Day, they had the right to vote if they got in line before the polls closed. But the provincial election offices are not official polling places, and officials had already announced the closing times at 2 p.m. over the weekend.
Unlike other states, Pennsylvania does not have true early in-person voting. Voters can register early for mail-in ballots online or in person at county election buildings.
Doing this in person can take about 12 minutes and requires requesting a ballot, waiting for a barcoded envelope to be printed and then, if voters wish, they can cast their ballot on the spot. Or they can put it in a mailbox or mailbox. The election offices must receive the ballots before 8 p.m. on Tuesday; a postmark by then is not sufficient, according to the state.
No-excuse mail-in voting is relatively new in Pennsylvania. The Legislature approved an expansion of the practice in 2019. In 2020, Trump said — without any evidence to support the claim — that mail-in voting was rife with fraud, discouraging many Republicans from voting by mail. That has changed this year, with Trump and business magnate Elon Musk endorsing the practice and calling on supporters to vote early by mail.
Pennsylvania is the biggest battleground with the most votes this year and has by far the most visits from Trump and Harris. The state narrowly went to Trump in 2016 before flipping to Biden in 2020. Bucks County voted for Hillary Clinton by one point in 2016 before Biden expanded the Democratic lead to five points in 2020.
