Where to drop off your mail ballot in Philadelphia

Most Americans cast their ballots in person at polling places, but voting by mail is a long-standing tradition in U.S. elections, dating back to the American Revolution.

While Pennsylvanians have used mail-in voting for decades, the state saw a surge of mail ballots in 2020, according to MIT’s Election Lab. This followed a 2019 law making all registered voters eligible for mail-in voting. Soon after, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted more people to do their civic duty remotely.

Since then, Pew reports more than a third of U.S. voters cast their vote through the mail.

“Voters in Philadelphia have many options on how they can make their voice heard this year,” said Philadelphia City Commissioner Lisa Deeley. “Regardless of how you vote, please take the time to vote down the ballot for all the offices on the ballot.”

Deeley noted that in the last presidential election, more than 40,000 Philly voters skipped the Attorney General, Auditor General, State Treasurer, and U.S. Congress race on their ballots. Of the nearly 750,000 Philly voters who cast their ballot in 2020, more than 100,000 of them didn’t vote for a state representative.

“Philadelphia’s low participation is diminishing our impact on statewide elections and minimizing voters’ voices in local and legislative contests,” she said.

The Inquirer’s 2024 Pennsylvania General Election Voting Guide has a full breakdown of each race, including the president, U.S. Congress, state House and Senate members, and more.

Here is everything you need to know about mail-in voting in Philadelphia.

To vote by mail, a voter must apply for a mail-in ballot online, or in person at an election office.

The deadline to apply for a mail ballot is 5p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024. Any application received after the deadline will not be eligible for mail-in voting.

Voters planning to mail their application close to the deadline should instead consider dropping it off at a local election office.

The deadline to return a mail ballot is 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Any mail ballots received after the deadline will not be counted.

There are 34 mail-in ballot drop-off locations throughout Philadelphia, either at City Hall, election offices, or official mail-in ballot drop boxes.

Mail ballots cannot be returned to polling places, they must be returned to official drop-off locations.

Find the nearest mail ballot drop-off location at vote.phila.gov/ballot-drop-off.

Check the status of a mail-in ballot at pavoterservices.pa.gov. If there are any issues or questions, contact the Philadelphia City Commissioners office at 215-686-3469.

If a voter has an illness or disability that prevents them from returning their mail ballot, they can have a “designated agent” return their ballot for them.

A voter must complete a designation of agent form to allow another person to return their ballot. Both the voter and the agent must sign the form. The agent will return the voter’s mail ballot alongside the form to a local election office.

If a voter feels intimidated or sees suspicious activity at a polling or mail ballot drop-off location, report an election complaint to the state election offices.

Report an election complaint at pavoterservices.pa.gov or call 1-877-868-3772.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911.