The Luzerne County Elections Office has 1,200 voter registration applications for the Nov. 5 general election and 5,300 mail-in ballot applications to process, according to a status report released by County Executive Romilda Crocamo shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday.
Crocamo said the office expects the remaining 1,200 registrations to be processed by the end of the day. Monday was the last date for registration.
She said her goal to follow up on mail-in ballot applications is the end of this week, with the caveat that additional requests for mail-in ballots will continue to arrive until the state’s deadline on Tuesday.
At the Board of Elections meeting Wednesday night, Crocamo said there were approximately 2,500 voter registration applications remaining, meaning 1,300 applications had been processed by a team of workers by 4 p.m. Thursday.
Crocamo said registration applications awaiting review and approval are paper and online and include new voter registrations and applications to change political parties and addresses.
She also said some applications were duplicates because voters were already registered but did not opt out of the state’s automatic registration when they renewed their driver’s licenses.
While the number of outstanding mail-in ballot applications was not clear during Wednesday’s meeting, Crocamo said later that evening that the office had processed all mail-in ballot applications submitted through Monday.
Crocamo said her understanding is that the 5,300 mail-in ballot applications still waiting to be processed came in this week.
As of Wednesday night, the county had issued 51,000 ballots and received 17,000 completed ballots from voters.
Crocamo said all legal deadlines will be met.
This situation is urgently needed because there must be sufficient time for voters to receive their ballots in the mail, complete them and bring them in person to the elections office by 8pm on November 5th. Postage stamps do not count toward meeting the deadline.
After the new statistics were released, Crocamo issued a statement expressing deep gratitude to Elections Director Emily Cook, Deputy Director Steve Hahn and “all the dedicated elections workers who have tirelessly contributed to the democratic process in our community.”
Statement:
“Emily and Steve, along with their team, went above and beyond, working long hours to ensure every vote was counted and every voice was heard.
Their efforts not only uphold the democratic values we hold dear, but also inspire confidence in our electoral system. Through the hard work of people like Emily and Steve, we can feel secure in the knowledge that our elections are run fairly and transparently.
I commend their exceptional service and dedication to our community. Let us recognize and celebrate the vital role of all election workers who work behind the scenes to ensure our democracy thrives.
Thank you, Emily, Steve, and all election workers, for your amazing contribution to our community. Your hard work does not go unnoticed, and we are truly grateful.
Contact Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
