Westmoreland leaders mull solutions to accommodate expected volume of mail-in ballots

Additional opportunities for Westmoreland County’s mail-in voters this fall are being considered as local officials plan for potential slowdowns related to budget cuts at the U.S. Postal Service.

Commissioners said Monday no plans have been finalized, but they might consider creating satellite elections bureau locations to allow voters another option to submit completed ballots for the November presidential election.

“We have to think outside the box,” Commissioner Sean Kertes said.

Using unattended drop boxes for mail-in ballots is not an option. Kertes, along with Commissioner Doug Chew, said existing mail-in voting statutes prohibit that.

The county operates one drop box for ballots at the courthouse that is monitored by staff.

Kertes and Chew, both Republicans, said elections bureau staffers could be dispatched to various locations in the county to accept mail-in ballots.

“We will be watching as the ballots come in and investigate other ways to do this if there are any problems. Every vote is important, and I don’t want to see votes not counted,” Chew said.

Democratic Commissioner Gina Cerilli said she expects county officials to discuss plans for the November election this week.

Pennsylvania allowed expanded mail-in voting for the first time this spring, and few problems were reported in Westmoreland County.

Commissioners rejected claims from the White House that the mail-in voting system is at risk for fraud, but conceded that concern over the postal service’s ability to ensure ballots will be delivered on time this fall might require additional precautions at the county level.

State officials were warned late last week that the postal service might have problems meeting deadlines to get ballots delivered in time to be counted. In Pennsylvania, completed ballots must be received at the courthouse by Election Day to be counted.

Westmoreland received about 40,000 mail-in ballots for the June primary, and new Elections Bureau Director JoAnn Sebastiani said Monday there could be as many as 100,000 cast this fall. She said about 15,000 applications for mail-in ballots have been submitted.

Monday was the first day on the job for Sebastiani in her role as head of the elections bureau. She said she has to evaluate the current procedures for mail-in balloting. Commissioners said they want her assessment of how that process should work before making any final decisions.

County officials explored hiring a private company to oversee vote-by-mail applications and ballots this fall.

Chew said proposals were solicited and a contract could be awarded this month.