With just a week until Election Day, officials are urging residents who plan to vote by mail to submit their ballots. And for Allegheny County voters who are worried the mail won’t deliver them in time, the county is opening up 10 return sites where they can drop off the ballots once complete.
The county Elections Division must receive a ballot by 8 p.m. on Nov. 5 for it to be counted. Ballots which arrive later than that will not be accepted — no matter when they are postmarked.
The drop-off locations are similar to those employed by the county for the spring primary: staffed locations where voters hand their completed mail-in ballots directly to election staff, ensuring ballots don’t get lost in the mail or arrive after polls close. The ballots are then transported, with a police escort, to the county’s election warehouse on Pittsburgh’s North Side, where they are stored until election day.
The following sites will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Oct. 29 to Nov. 1, and then again on Nov. 4. They’ll also be open the weekend before the election, Nov. 2-3, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Allegheny County Emergency Services Building, 150 Hookstown Grade Road, Coraopolis, 15108
Boyce Park Four Seasons Lodge, 901 Centerview Drive, Plum 15239
Carnegie Public Library–Squirrel Hill, 5801 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh 15217
North Park Ice Rink, 1200 Pearce Mill Road, Wexford 15090
South Park Ice Rink, 30 Corrigan Drive, Bethel Park 15102
Dormont Pool, 1801 Dormont Ave., Pittsburgh 15216
Community College of Allegheny County-Homewood, 701 N. Homewood Ave., Pittsburgh 15208
Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank, 1 N. Linden Street, Duquesne 15110
Avalon Public Library, 317 S. Home Ave., Pittsburgh 15202
Voters can also return their ballots to the County Office Building downtown (542 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219) from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the weekends. On Election Day, the County Office Building will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. It is the only location to which voters can return their mail-in ballots in person on Election Day. The lane on Ross Street closest to the building will be blocked off for temporary parking while voters return their ballots.
Voters must return their own ballot. Those with disabilities who are unable to do so can have a third party drop off their ballot, but they must submit a form.
After submitting a mail-in ballot, voters can consult the Department of State website to make sure it has been counted.
Voters who requested and received a mail-in or absentee ballot but who have since decided to vote in person can surrender their ballot and vote at their local polling place. Those who do not have their mail-in ballot or confirmation that it was received by the county can vote using a provisional ballot at their polling place. Find yours here.
The deadline to apply for an absentee or mail-in ballot for the general election is 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29.
