PA Election Was Fair, Accurate Most Say In Patch Survey

PENNSYLVANIA — Most of the 5,300 people who responded to Patch's non-scientific voting survey this week said they believe both state and national election results are fair and accurate, but readers had strong opinions whether they agreed or not.

The survey, which appeared in questionnaire form Wednesday on Patch, is meant not to be a scientific poll but only to give a broad idea of public sentiment.

Confidence in the results

Regarding confidence in the election results, more than 64 percent saying they "strongly agree" the election in Pennsylvania was fair and accurate. But 24 percent of respondents said they "strongly disagree" that the results were fair and accurate.

This comes as the Trump campaign continues to pursue litigation to block the Pennsylvania results from being certified.

An almost identical number of respondents said they were confident in the national results. Nearly 64 percent said they "strongly" agreed the results were fair and accurate, and 4 percent said they "somewhat" agreed. About 23 percent said they "strongly" disagree that the 2020 national election results were fair and accurate, and 6.5 percent "somewhat" disagreed.

How they voted

Most of those who responded said they voted by mail-in ballot. About 56 percent of respondents said they either mailed that ballot in or dropped it off in a ballot box. About 40 of voters said they voted in-person on Election Day. A small fraction of respondents — 3 percent — said they voted in-person but early using an absentee ballot.

How did the voting process go?

The majority of those who voted in-person said their voting experience was free of problems such as long lines, malfunctioning equipment or inadequate staffing. About 70 percent said their voting process went smoothly. About 20 percent said some things went well, and others poorly. And just over 9 percent said things went poorly.

Nearly 88 percent of those who voted by mail or absentee said they tracked the status of their ballot online. Of those, 90 percent confirmed their ballot was received by Election Day.

Thoughts on voting by mail

More than 55 percent of respondents strongly agreed that voting by mail is safe, reliable and generally free of fraud. But nearly a quarter of those who responded "strongly disagree" that voting by mail is safe and reliable.

A majority of those who responded said voting by mail should be made easier in future elections.

More than 56 percent strongly agreed with that statement. About 21 percent strongly disagreed that voting by mail should be expanded.

Reader comments

While most said voting went smoothly, some voters said they had problems at the polls. Others weighed in on mail-in voting.

Here's a sampling of some of the comments, both positive and negative, shared by readers:

• "If people are willing to receive paychecks, tax refunds, banking information, and other important documents by mail, then they by default trust that the mail system is safe and works. Voting by mail should always be an option, pandemic or not. Not everyone is able to get off work to vote in person, and not everyone has the physical ability to get to a polling location. Mail-in voting increases voter participation. It is an important next step in the democratic process. More people need to be heard. More votes need to be cast."
• "I think we need election reform, thought that for a while, nothing to do with this year. While I have no proof/knowledge of voter fraud occurring at this election, I see the motivation to do so and that worries me for the future."
• "I believe the voting process should take place by absentee ballot or in-person. I found PA's process to be highly questionable and the new processes this year seemed to act as a disruption to the process. Between the changes in voting regulations, timing of ballots coming in and being counted, signatures not having to match, fill-in ballots, etc...doesn't seem give me confidence in the process."
• "I feel very confident in the voting process. I am extremely disturbed with the allegations of fraud and trying to change the outcome."
• "This was my first time voting. It was not what I expected. I did not feel I had privacy putting my paper I filled out into the machine."
• "Waited in line outside for 2 1/2 hrs. It was cold but luckily sunny. Polls were understaffed. At 2pm a friend working the polls said they had not gotten a break. She’d been there since 6am..
  My son never received his absentee ballot at college. We paid to bring him home on the train to vote for his first time..We have never experienced more than a 30 minute wait."
• "The process would have been better if the Republicans in our state legislature had allowed counting of the ballots to begin earlier."
• "First time mail-in voter. Straight forward and simple effort without time wasting."
• "I dropped off my ballot at the court house. I was not confident in the mail. I hope in future elections, the USPS will be properly funded to restore confidence in the mail."
• "They didn’t check ID, didn’t require signatures, were extremely unfriendly and the new voting system is terrible."
• "The voting process for 2020 was a complete scam. Mail-ins should be reserved for the informed or elderly. Our right to vote is one of America's last great freedoms and should be done fairly. How can we trust a process that wasn't in full view nor represented by both sides? And then delivered by a governmental agency (post office) that is not represented by both sides fairly? Really sad state of affairs that the last best hope on earth, America, had such a shoddy process in this election."
• "Speculation and hyperbole do not replace the role of objective evidence. Time for us to put our swords down and recognize the myriad ideals we mutually share. If our goal is one great Nation then we must not allow politicians (who accept corporate funding that is not in our best interest), news outlets (who accept corporate funding that is not in our best interest), and social media (who accept corporate funding that is not in our best interest) to divide us. Division sows increased marketing ad revenue to the detriment of our populace. Let's put down our devices and return to civility and unity. One love."
• "Voting was chaotic at the polls (St Mary's Church, Ardmore)"