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COLUMN |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State Rep.
Nick Kotik |
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March 2010
Pennsylvania's primary election this year is on May 18; however, the deadline to register in time to vote in the upcoming election is April 19.
Voters will be casting ballots on various state and locals offices, but making sure you're a registered voter is the first step in the voting process.
To be eligible to vote in Pennsylvania, you must be at least 18 on the date of the election, a citizen of the United States for at least one month before the election and a resident of the election district in Pennsylvania in which you register at least 30 days before the election.
This message is particularly important if you will be 18 by May 18, have moved or have just become a citizen of Allegheny County. In addition, current registered voters also have until the April 19 deadline to change party affiliation.
You can register to vote in a number of ways, including in person, by mail or online. You can stop in either my Coraopolis or Carnegie office to fill out the form or go online through the link on my Web site. Local voting information in Allegheny County is also available at 412-350-4500.
As a member of the General Assembly, it is my responsibility to review bills related to election reform and voting procedures and standards in Pennsylvania. One bill would make voting standards that were adopted a few years ago under the federal Help America Vote Act permanent here in Pennsylvania.
A voting standard is what constitutes a vote on the various voting methods the state uses, including paper, punch card and optical scanner ballots and lever machines, although the state no longer uses punch cards or lever machines.
Under HAVA, each state was required to adopt uniform and nondiscriminatory standards that define what a vote is, and what will be counted as one. A 2006 law made those standards applicable to any election held in 2006 and 2007. This bill would make the same standards applicable to any election held hereafter.
Another bill would guarantee military men and women the right to vote by absentee ballot. Military personnel have the right to vote absentee based on a federal law. The goal of this legislation is to put that right into the Pennsylvania Constitution.
Currently, the state constitution does not specifically guarantee the right of the military to vote by absentee ballot. The state constitution currently only allows people to vote by absentee ballot if they are away from their residential municipality on the day of the election due to illness or if it is a requirement of their job, if they're observing a religious holiday, or in the event that they are employed by the county and have Election Day duties.
Please feel free to contact me by calling my Coraopolis office at 412-264-4260 or my Carnegie office at 412-429-5091, or send me an e-mail through my Web site: www.pahouse.com/kotik for more information related to elections and voting.