Question about Luzerne County election ballot wording answered

Luzerne County won’t be forced to correct June 2 primary election ballots because the candidate residency was properly listed, the county solicitor’s office determined.

County Councilman Harry Haas, a candidate for representative in the 8th Congressional District, raised the issue at the April 28 council meeting, saying the law may require ballots to list contenders along with their municipality in his race. Instead, the ballot states the county.

County administrators said they did not have the legal opinion handy during the meeting but would check. If the county had erred, it would create a problem because ballots already had started going out April 27 to those seeking mail-in voting.

Following up later in the week, county Chief Solicitor Romilda Crocamo said the county ballots are correct based on state law and direction the Pennsylvania Department of State had provided to the county election bureau. Municipalities would only be listed in that race if the entire congressional district falls within one county, she said.

“Given that the 8th Congressional District encompasses portions of Lackawanna, Wayne, Pike, Luzerne, and Monroe counties, the proper designation is the county, not the municipality, of residence of the candidate,” she wrote.

Incumbent Matt Cartwright, of Lackawanna County, is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination. On the Republican side, there are six candidates seeking that party’s nomination — Lackawanna County resident Earl Granville and Luzerne County residents Haas, Teddy Daniels, Jim Bognet, Mike Cammisa and Mike Marsicano.

Another election question

Also at last week’s meeting, Councilman Stephen J. Urban asked what happens if voters who take advantage of the new mail-in ballot option later decide they want to vote in person on election day.

In the past, absentee voters had the right to appear at the polls and have the ballot they had mailed in voided.

County Manager C. David Pedri said the night of the council meeting he was still awaiting an answer to that question.

Later in the week, Pedri said he verified the state law passed last year to allow no-excuse, mail-in voting has eliminated the option to vote in person for those who cast mail-in/absentee ballots.

However, provisions were made for voters who requested mail-in/absentee ballots but failed to return them in time. Voters in this situation have two options: deliver the ballot in person to the county election office by 8 p.m. on Election Day or vote by provisional ballot at their polling place, the law says.

Election decisions

Pedri is set to present his final June 2 coronavirus polling place consolidation plan to the county election board Wednesday.

The number of voting locations must be reduced from 144 buildings to an estimated 58 “well-ventilated, larger buildings” to alleviate concerns about proper social distancing and polling place and poll worker shortages, Pedri has said.

Pedri also plans to require voters to use paper ballots if they vote in-person, although a new electronic touchscreen ballot marking device would be set up at each polling location for the visually impaired and other disabled voters.

The virtual election board meeting starts at 4:30 p.m., with instructions on how to access it posted in the authorities/boards/commissions section at www.luzernecounty.org.

More meetings

Two council committees also will meet virtually this week: code review at 2 p.m. Monday and real estate at 2 p.m. Tuesday. Information on attending these meetings is posted on the council section at www.luzernecounty.org.