Keystone Today

In Pennsylvania, thousands of voters have their mail-in ballots rejected each year due to a common error: writing an incorrect date or no date at all on their ballot envelope. Election officials do not use the date to determine whether the ballot was returned on time; ballots must be received by county boards of election by 8 p.m. on Election Day, regardless of the handwritten date. This requirement led to the rejection of at least 10,000 timely submitted ballots in the 2022 general election.

Today, a statewide coalition of nonpartisan community organizations sued Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt and election officials in Philadelphia and Allegheny County. The lawsuit demands an end to disqualifying mail-in ballots for inconsequential date errors, claiming it violates the fundamental right to vote as guaranteed by the Pennsylvania Constitution.

The petitioners—Black Political Empowerment Project, POWER Interfaith, Make the Road Pennsylvania, OnePA Activists United, New PA Project Education Fund, Casa San José, Pittsburgh United, League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, and Common Cause Pennsylvania—are represented by attorneys from the Public Interest Law Center and the ACLU of Pennsylvania. Pro bono co-counsel from Arnold & Porter also joined.

Several voters supported the complaint with sworn declarations describing their experiences. Joanne Sowell from Allegheny County recounted receiving an email notifying her that her ballot would be rejected for an incorrect date while she was boarding a plane for vacation. "When I returned from my trip...it was too late to fix it," Sowell wrote in her declaration. "I am very upset that my ballot will not count because nobody’s ballot should get rejected for a trivial paperwork mistake."

Joe Sommar from Chester County also submitted a declaration after his ballot was rejected. "I don’t believe that the date serves any purpose," said Sommar. "The county knows that my ballot was received on time...It seems like an arbitrary thing."

Ben Geffen, senior attorney at the Public Interest Law Center stated: “Our state constitution is clear: every vote matters in Pennsylvania.” He added that procedures blocking even one eligible voter are suspect and called for ending this requirement which annually causes thousands of rejections over harmless clerical errors.

An investigation found that older voters and Black and Latino communities face higher rates of rejection due to these errors. In Philadelphia's 2022 general election, voters over age 50 cast 72% of mail-in ballots but accounted for 81% of those rejected due to clerical mistakes.

Mike Lee, executive director of ACLU of Pennsylvania said: “This arbitrary handwritten date requirement has already disenfranchised tens of thousands...Pennsylvania counties must do everything they can to ensure that every vote is counted.”

A separate federal lawsuit challenging this requirement filed by NAACP claimed it violates federal civil rights law. The Third Circuit Court upheld these rules but proceedings continue.

Community organizations involved emphasized fair voting access:

- Alex Wallach Hanson (Pittsburgh United): “Requiring voters to fill out arbitrary forms is a major contributing factor to ongoing disenfranchisement.”

- Kadida Kenner (New PA Project Education Fund): Disqualifying ballots over trivial errors discourages participation.

- Diana Robinson (Make the Road PA): Refusing votes over minor technicalities undermines fair elections.

- Steve Paul (One PA Activists United): Rejecting ballots silences marginalized communities.

- Philip Hensley-Robin (Common Cause PA): Ensuring every voice is heard aligns with constitutional guarantees.

- Maria Delgado-Santana (League of Women Voters PA): Rejecting ballots over minor errors undermines democracy.

- Rev. Gregory Edwards (POWER Interfaith): Removing unnecessary barriers upholds free and equal elections.