The Bucks County Board of Elections voted to approve the creation of four temporary satellite offices for on-demand mail-in ballots.
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The new locations will be able to handle voter registration requests and include a secure ballot drop box.
The new offices will be located at Bucks County Community College’s Upper Bucks Campus, 1 Hillendale Road, Perkasie; Bucks County Community College, The Gateway Center, 275 Swamp Road, Newtown Township; Bucks County Community College Gene and Marlene Epstein Campus at Lower Bucks, 1304 Veterans Highway Bristol Township; and Warminster Township Free Library, 1076 Emma Lane, Warminster.
Credit: NewtownPANow.com
The offices are expected to open in early October and give Bucks County voters seven locations where they can apply in person for a mail-in ballot and receive it during the same visit.
Mail-in ballots will continue to be available at the main Bucks County Board of Elections office in Doylestown Borough and at satellite offices at the Bucks County Government Services Centers in Richland Township and Bristol Township.
Credit: Matt Smith/Spotlight PA
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Hours for the new locations will vary and are expected to be announced in the coming weeks, officials said.
The county uses the term “on-demand voting” for the process of applying for and receiving a mail-in ballot during an in-person visit to an elections office. It is not early voting, which Pennsylvania law does not allow, according to the county.
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Under the process, voters submit a written mail-in ballot application directly to an election employee.
Staff members process the applications individually and print a ballot for each qualifying voter.
The Bucks County Board of Elections estimates the process takes at least 10 to 15 minutes per voter. That estimate does not include time spent waiting in line, which can range from minutes to hours depending on factors, including voter turnout.
An on-demand ballot is a mail-in ballot, with the primary difference being that the ballot is provided to the voter in person rather than delivered through the U.S. Postal Service.
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