To Vote By Mail Or Not? Here's What Pennsylvanians Think

PENNSYLVANIA — The 2020 presidential election was shaping up to a big one for Pennsylvanians long before anyone knew public health and the capacity of the United States Postal Service would each play a vital role in it.

Record numbers of voters are expected to cast their ballots by mail, both in Pennsylvania and across the nation, as health officials continue to recommend it as the safest choice amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

On Monday, we asked Patch readers across Pennsylvania to give their thoughts on a number of questions related to mail-in balloting and the upcoming election.

More than 6,000 individuals responded to the informal survey, nearly all of whom say they plan to vote in the upcoming election, and with a majority indicating both that they would vote by mail and that they were concerned their vote may not be counted.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy caused controversy after announcing certain operational changes to the United States Postal Service which Democrats said would cripple the timely delivery of mail-in ballots. Shortly thereafter,

The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office announced in response, along with 20 others states, a lawsuit which would prevent those changes, citing the threat to the November election. As the lawsuits were announced last week, DeJoy said all policy or operational changes would be suspended until after the election.

The issue continues to be split on partisan lines nationally. Locally, Democratic leaders were adamant in their optimism that mail-in balloting would be protected, and that Pennsylvanians should not worry about casting their vote by mail.

"Pennsylvanians have every reason to feel confident," Attorney General Josh Shapiro said. "And know that we're on it."

According to the Patch survey, more than 55 percent of respondents said they would vote by mail, with 44 percent saying they would not.

Despite the majority stating they would vote by mail, they also indicated they were concerned their vote would not be counted or received if they did so.

That concern does not necessarily translate to a widespread belief of an effort to intentionally undermine democracy. More than 56 percent of respondents said that they do not think voting by mail encourages fraudulent activity.

Voters were also mixed when it came to the optimism they expressed regarding the smoothness of the election, and specifically about the timeliness of vote tabulation. About 37 percent said they were "very confident," but another 35 percent were "somewhat confident," and more than 26 percent of all respondents were "not at all confident."

When asked to put into words their thoughts on the election, "fraud" was one of the most commonly repeated responses. So were "safe" and "necessary."

"You can do this ballot multiple times," one respondent thought. "It cannot be accurate just as a mail in vote."

"My concern is that my primary ballot did not arrive in time for me to return it back in time for the primary," a Bucks County resident said.

Finally: "I am not concerned with receiving my mail in ballot, however, I am concerned with the completed ballots being delivered in a timely fashion. Therefore, I may deliver my ballot in person."

The deadline for applying for a mail in ballot is a week before the Nov. 3 election, on Oct. 27. You can apply or register to vote in person here.