'Let's Make a Deal' asks frontline staff to join its special

124975180_web1_Arrest-graphic

Hazleton man charged with rape conspiracy

With the push on for mail-in voting on June 2, Luzerne County residents and officials have been publicly questioning how these paper ballots will be secured, kept confidential and counted.
				We&rsquo;ve compiled some of the many questions, along with answers presented by state and county officials in recent days during interviews, public briefings and meetings.
				State legislators authorized mail-in voting last year, eliminating the need to provide any reason or &ldquo;excuse,&rdquo; starting with the 2020 primary. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, officials here and statewide have been promoting it as a safe option for voters who don&rsquo;t want to cast their ballots in person.
				Registered voters must apply for the mail-in ballots, and the county has processed 24,250 applications so far.
				As of Wednesday, the county had mailed 16,200 ballots to voters who had previously applied, and batches of ballots continue to go out daily.
				The deadline to apply for mail-in ballots is 5 p.m. May 26.
				Some questions that have been raised, with election official responses:
				&#8226; Where are the completed mail-in ballots stored?
				Until they can be opened on Election Day, the ballots are kept in a locked room. The key is in another locked room with access controlled by county Election Director Shelby Watchilla.
				&#8226; Will county election workers be able to tell how I voted when they tabulate the mail-in ballots?
				To understand why the answer is no, Watchilla and deputy election director Mary Beth Steininger first explained how the ballot is sent.
				Along with instructions, mail-in voters receive a ballot, a plain white secrecy envelope with no identifying information on it and an outer envelope that contains the voter&rsquo;s name and a label with a bar code that, when scanned, identifies that voter in the state&rsquo;s database.
				After filling out the ballot, voters must place it in the white envelope, seal it and then put that envelope inside the one with the label/barcode to be returned to the county.
				Starting at 7 a.m. on Election Day, groups of election workers will make two piles &mdash; one of the opened outer envelopes and the other containing the still-sealed, non-identifying white envelopes containing the ballots.
				The outer envelopes are scanned so the system records which voters have cast mail-in ballots.
				The white envelopes are shuffled before the seals are broken so that workers can no longer connect the two piles. Once opened, the ballots inside the white envelopes are scanned in.
				&#8226; What if I receive the wrong ballot for my location or political party?
				Don&rsquo;t fill it out and immediately report the problem to the county election office at 570-825-1715.
				&#8226; Is there any monitoring of the ballot counting?
				Bi-partisan teams of election workers will tabulate the mail-in ballots at the county&rsquo;s Penn Place building in downtown Wilkes-Barre. Observation is open to a representative of each political party and candidates or their representatives.
				The county will have several scanners to tabulate the ballots, although no results can be released until after 8 p.m. on Election Day.
				&#8226; What happens if voters pick more than the allotted number of candidates, cross out selections or fail to completely fill in ovals with black pen as instructed?
				Questionable ballots will be flagged and reviewed through an adjudication process within days after the election.
				&#8226; Will a list of voters who submitted mail-in ballots be displayed at polling places as it was in the past for absentee ballots?
				Yes.
				&#8226; Will ballot envelopes be opened by hand or with a time-saving machine?
				By hand. The election office has a machine that opens regular mail, but it won&rsquo;t be used for mail-in ballots because it periodically rips the paper and could compromise the integrity of the ballot.
				&#8226; If a voter already filled out a mail-in ballot application but received a second application from the county or some other source, should it be filled out again?
				No.
				&#8226; How will you be sure someone doesn&rsquo;t get more than one mail-in ballot?
				Once a label/bar code is prepared for a voter&rsquo;s mail-in ballot, a second one can&rsquo;t be issued.
				&#8226; What if I don&rsquo;t mail in the ballot in time?
				Mail-in ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day, and postmarks don&rsquo;t count. Voters cutting it too close to the deadline can bring the ballot to the county election office at Penn Place by that deadline or vote by provisional ballot at their polling place. The sign-in books at polling places will tell election workers which voters received mail-in ballots, warranting them to vote by provisional.
				&#8226; How can you prevent someone from voting twice by casting both a provisional ballot and sending in or dropping off a mail-in one?
				Provisional ballots are counted last, and the election database would show if the county already received a mail-in ballot that would prevent the provisional ballot from being tabulated.
				In-person voting
				As previously reported, the county has reduced voting locations from 144 to 58 for those casting their ballots in person due to pandemic-related poll worker shortages and the need for some larger, more ventilated structures to accommodate social distancing.
				A link to all location changes and other information has been posted under a large 2020 presidential election banner at <a href="https://www.luzernecounty.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.luzernecounty.org</a>.
				Watchilla said Thursday she believes voting by mail is the safest option but wholeheartedly supports the right for voters to appear in person. However, she cautioned it is &ldquo;very likely&rdquo; voters will encounter lines because it is a presidential primary.

Primary voting Q&A: Mail-in voting process explained