Mail ballot procedures in Pennsylvania have not changed since the May primary, Secretary of State Al Schmidt said during a recent pre-election press briefing.
Schmidt’s remarks came Sept. 15, a day after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to let the U.S. Postal Service tighten the use of mail ballots ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, USA Today reported.
Under a controversial order President Donald Trump signed in March, states would have been required to give lists of verified voters to the Postal Service and use a specific design for ballot envelopes that includes unique voter barcodes. The Postal Service could have refused to deliver ballots that did not meet the new rules.
The effort is part of Trump’s relentless challenges to the security of mail ballots, which he continues to use to cast his own votes.
Schmidt, a Republican appointed by Gov. Josh Shapiro in 2023, called the court’s decision a major victory for Pennsylvania voters that provided finality for voters and counties ahead of the midterm contests.
“Eligible Pennsylvanians who choose to vote by mail should have confidence that they can continue to do so safely and securely,” Schmidt said.
Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in his concurring opinion that local election officials do not have enough time to implement the rule before the elections.
The case’s future remains unclear, however, since he also wrote there is “at least a fair prospect" that the Postal Service has the authority to act. Only two justices, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, publicly dissented.
Not at this point.
In a separate attempt to assert federal control over elections that are to be overseen by states, Trump made efforts to obtain a copy of the state’s voter roll with voters’ personal identifying information, according to reporting by VoteBeat Pennsylvania.
A federal district judge in Pennsylvania dismissed the case, which Trump’s Department of Justice could appeal.
The Justice Department sued 29 other states and the District of Columbia, as well, for voter information states maintain the federal government is not entitled to.
“We in Pennsylvania, our governor, Josh Shapiro, our secretary of state, continue to reassure us all that we will not have any federal interference with our elections,” Pennsylvania House Speaker Joanna McClinton said during a democracy panel in Philadelphia Sept. 10. “We will not be threatened by this administration (seeking) names and addresses and rolls, and people’s private, personal data. We are not releasing that to anybody because it’s not the federal government’s business.”
In another case, lower courts have maintained that not dating or incorrectly dating mail ballots should not disenfranchise voters, according to Democracy Docket. But the U.S. Supreme Court signaled it could take up the case’s appeal where Republicans behind the lawsuit want to require Pennsylvania election officials to throw out ballots with missing or mistaken dates on the envelope.
A long-running fight over what to do with ballots that are not dated or improperly dated on the outer envelope remains up in the air, with multiple lawsuits in state and federal courts seeking to settle the issue that has roiled partisans over election administration for years.
Innocuous mistakes, like writing a birth date rather than that day’s date, have disqualified voters in some cases.
In its guidance on mail ballot procedures, the Department of State, which oversees and certifies elections, advises county workers to “segregate any ballots enclosed in a declaration envelope that is undated or deemed to have an incorrect date.”
The Department of State also encourages voters to date their ballot’s outer envelope while the issue remains somewhat in limbo.
So far, 14 counties in Pennsylvania have sent out mail ballots to voters.
Pennsylvanians have until Monday, Oct. 19, to register to vote in the November election. You can check your registration status at the Department of State’s website. The deadline to change registration information is also Oct. 19.
The deadline to apply for a mail ballot is 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 27.
The deadline to submit a mail ballot is 8 p.m. Election Day.
Mark Walters is the USA TODAY Network Pennsylvania statehouse reporter. Reach him at mwalters@usatodayco.com.
MORE: Mail ballots now available for Philly voters
