Allegheny County voters won’t have the option of satellite offices ahead of primary – By Julian Routh (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) / April 13 2021
Unlike last November’s general election, voters in Allegheny County won’t have the opportunity to visit satellite offices ahead of this May’s primary to apply for and vote their ballot all in one stop, officials confirmed Tuesday.
Last October, on the three weekends before the calendar turned to election month, the county opened several locations — from the South Park Ice Rink to the Boyce Park Ski Lodge — so voters could cast a ballot over-the-counter.
County elections administrators said the offices were intended to help mitigate concerns last year over the timeliness of the U.S. Postal Service — concerns that aren’t as pressing now — that it would be too costly to host the offices ahead of the May 18 contests.
“It really comes down to, we just can’t be all things to all people when it comes to cost,” County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said at a Tuesday meeting of the Board of Elections, “and it becomes very difficult. We know this will be a low turnout election.”
