Pennsylvania Secretary of State: Online voter registration logged more than 32,000 users in run-up to November election

HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 6, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Secretary of State Pedro A. Cortés today announced that 32,428 Pennsylvanians have used the state's new online voter registration site in anticipation of the Nov. 3 municipal election.

From the launch in August until the registration deadline Monday at midnight, the site was used by 20,375 eligible citizens applying for new registrations, and by 12,053 voters making changes to their existing registration.

Governor Tom Wolf and Secretary Cortés announced the launch Aug. 27, moments after the application site went live at register.votesPA.com.

"As the weeks went by, we were very happy to see more and more Pennsylvanians taking advantage of the new tool," Cortés said. "This bears out our expectation that eligible voters will find online registration to be the most convenient, secure and accessible option available."

The new site, available in English or Spanish, also allows currently registered voters to more easily make updates to their voter record, such as a change of name, address or party affiliation.

The new system has received broad support from county commissioners and election directors from across the Commonwealth, who agree the electronic applications will improve accuracy, increase the integrity of the voting rolls, reduce time-consuming data entry and yield considerable cost savings.

"The feedback from county election directors has been overwhelmingly positive," said Marian K. Schneider, Deputy Secretary for Elections and Administration. "Considering that more than 12,000 of the users to date were updating their current registration, we believe OVR has already contributed to improved accuracy of the voter rolls."

When an applicant completes the online form, the information is forwarded directly to the appropriate county voter registration office for processing.

After the Monday deadline, counties are not permitted to process applications for the next 30 days. However, the online registration site is always available. Applications submitted now will be processed after the 30-day window, and those voters will be registered to cast their ballots in the primary election set for April 26, 2016.

In the weeks since Pennsylvania's system went live, two more states – Nebraska and West Virginia – have launched online voter registration.

To learn more about online voter registration, check the frequently asked questions at www.votesPA.com.

MEDIA CONTACT: Wanda Murren, (717) 783-1621

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of State

Related Links

http://www.state.pa.us