Pennsylvania elections, 2022

This page is an overview of the 2022 Pennsylvania elections, including the offices on the ballot covered by Ballotpedia, election dates, and frequently asked questions.

Offices on the ballot[edit]

Election dates[edit]

Statewide election dates in Pennsylvania are listed below. For more dates, please see the elections calendar.

Statewide election dates[edit]

May 17, 2022: Primary
November 8, 2022: General election


Polling hours:

Local election dates

Ballotpedia provides comprehensive ballot coverage of municipal elections in the nation's 100 largest cities by population, including races for trial court judgeships and county offices that overlap them. Ballotpedia also covers the nation's 200 largest public school districts by student enrollment and all school districts overlapping the top 100 cities by population.

Frequently asked questions

When are the polls open?

See State Poll Opening and Closing Times (2022) for more information

Where can I find election results?

Election results are posted on Ballotpedia's election overview pages, as well as the relevant candidate pages. You can find links to the current election overview pages in the "Offices on the ballot" section of this page.

How do primaries work in Pennsylvania?

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Pennsylvania utilizes a closed primary process. Voters are required to register with a political party to vote in the primary election.^[1][2][3]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

How do I register to vote?

To register to vote in Pennsylvania, an applicant must be a citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next election, a resident of the district in which he or she is registering for at least 30 days before the next election, and at least 18 years old by the day of the next election.^[4] The deadline for registering to vote is 15 days before the election.^[5] Registration can be done online, in person, or by mail. Prospective voters can register in person at the county voter registration office or at a number of state agencies, including Pennsylvania Department of Transportation centers. The Pennsylvania voter registration application is available online and can be mailed to the county voter registration office.^[6]

Is there an early voting period?

See also: Early voting

Pennsylvania permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.

Who is eligible for absentee voting?

See also: Absentee/mail-in voting

The table below displays absentee voting information specific to Pennsylvania's 2022 primary election.

State court strikes down law extending absentee/mail-in voting eligibility to all voters[edit]

On January 28, 2022, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court struck down Act 77, which made absentee/mail-in voting available to all eligible electors, as a violation of the Pennsylvania Constitution. The court voted 3-2 on the matter, with Judges Mary Hannah Leavitt, Patricia McCullough, and Christine Fizzano Cannon (all Republicans) forming the majority and Judges Michael Wojcik and Ellen H. Ceisler (both Democrats) dissenting.^[7]

As a result, and pending action by the state supreme court, absentee/mail-in voting eligibility in Pennsylvania is governed by Article VII, Section 14, of the state constitution, which extends eligibility to "qualified electors who may, on the occurrence of any election, be absent from the municipality of their residence, because their duties, occupation, or business require them to be elsewhere or who, on the occurrence of any election, are unable to attend at their proper polling places because of illness or physical disability or who will not attend a polling place because of the observance of a religious holiday or who cannot vote because of election day duties, in the case of a county employee."

The court's analysis[edit]

Leavitt, writing for the majority, analyzed Act 77 within the context of three pertinent provisions of the state constitution:^[7]

• Article VII, Section 1, of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides, in part, that a voter must have "resided in the election district where he or she shall offer to vote at least 60 days immediately preceding the election[.]" Leavitt said, "Our Supreme Court has specifically held that the phrase 'offer to vote' requires the physical presence of the elector, whose 'ballot cannot be sent by mail or express, nor can it be cast outside of all Pennsylvania election districts and certified into the county where the voter has his domicile.'" Leavitt added, "There is no air in this construction of 'offer to vote.' ... Our Supreme Court has further directed that before legislation 'be placed on our statute books' to allow qualified electors absent from their polling place on Election Day to vote by mail, 'an amendment to the Constitution must be adopted permitting this to be done."^[7]

• Article VII, Section 4 establishes that "all elections by the citizens shall be by ballot or by such other method as may be prescribed by law," provided "that secrecy in voting be preserved." Leavitt said, "To read Section 4 as an authorization for no-excuse mail-in voting is wrong for three reasons. First, no-excuse mail-in voting uses a paper ballot and not some 'other method.' Second, this reading unhooks Section 4 from the remainder of Article VII as well as its historical underpinnings. It ignores the in-person place requirement that was made part of our fundamental law in 1838. Third, it renders Article Vii, Section 14, surplusage."^[7]

• Article VII, Section 14, provides for absentee/mail-in voting, extending its availability to "qualified electors who may, on the occurrence of any election, be absent from the municipality of their residence, because their duties, occupation, or business require them to be elsewhere or who, on the occurrence of any election, are unable to attend at their proper polling places because of illness or physical disability or who will not attend a polling place because of the observance of a religious holiday or who cannot vote because of election day duties, in the case of a county employee." Leavitt wrote, "Section 14 can only be understood as an exception to the rule established in Article VII, Section 1, that a qualified elector must present herself at her proper polling place to vote on Election Day, unless she must 'be absent" on Election Day for the reasons specified in Article VII, Section 14(a)."^[7]

Dissent[edit]

In a dissenting opinion, Wojcik disputed the majority's reading of Section 4 specifically: "[The] plain language of article VII, section 4 specifically empowers the General Assembly to provide a distinct method of casting a ballot for electors who are present in their municipality on a primary, general, or municipal election day by permitting the use of no-excuse mail-in ballots. This method is distinct from an elector’s appearance at his or her district of residence to cast a ballot as provided in article VII, section 1, either by paper ballot or by the use of a machine pursuant to article VII, section 6, or the use of an absentee ballot by an elector who is absent from his or her municipality on the day of a primary, general, or municipal election as provided in article VII, section 14."

Reactions[edit]

State Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman (R) said the following in a statement: "Today’s ruling should serve as a call to action to open up a serious conversation about the reforms necessary to make voting both accessible and secure for all Pennsylvanians. Governor Wolf has ignored this debate for over a year, but hopefully this ruling will help bring him to the table so we can address concerns about our election system once and for all. " State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) approved of the ruling, saying, "I welcome the end of 'no-excuse' mail-in voting in Pennsylvania and I introduced legislation this session that does just that."^[8][9]

Attorney General Josh Shapiro (D) said, "This opinion is based on twisted logic and faulty reasoning, and is wrong on the law. It will be immediately appealed and therefore won’t have any immediate impact on Pennsylvania’s upcoming elections."^[10] Governor Tom Wolf (D) also criticized the ruling: "The strength of our democracy and our country depends on eligible voters casting their ballot and selecting their leaders. We need leaders to support removing more barriers to voting, not trying to silence the people."^[11]

What are the voter ID laws in Pennsylvania?

See Voter identification laws by state.

How do I file to run for office?

See Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Pennsylvania for information on how to run for state or federal office.

What does Ballotpedia cover?

Ballotpedia's coverage extends to all elections on the federal level, all gubernatorial, state legislative, statewide ballot measure, and statewide judicial elections, as well as many other types of state executive offices. Local election coverage includes comprehensive ballot coverage for municipal and judicial elections in the top 100 cities by population and races for the large counties that overlap them. In the state capitals outside of the 100 largest cities, it includes coverage of mayoral, city council, and district attorney elections. It also includes school board elections in the top 200 largest school districts by enrollment, all California local ballot measures, and notable local ballot measures from across the nation. Ballotpedia also covers all elections in the U.S. territories but not elections in other countries.

How do I contact Ballotpedia with a question?

Email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Redistricting following the 2020 census

This section lists major events in the post-2020 census redistricting cycle in reverse chronological order. Major events include the release of apportionment data, the release of census population data, the introduction of formal map proposals, the enactment of new maps, and noteworthy court challenges. Click the dates below for additional information.

• March 7, 2022: The United States Supreme Court declined to block Pennsylvania's congressional map (Toth v. Chapman).
• February 28, 2022: An emergency filing was filed before the United States Supreme Court challenging the enacted congressional map (Toth v. Chapman).
• February 23, 2022: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled to enact a new congressional map.
• February 4, 2022: The Legislative Reapportionment Commission approved new legislative maps.
• February 2, 2022: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that it would have control over the process to select a new congressional map.
• January 31, 2022: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court halted a lower court's consideration of the map proposals so it could rule on which court should select the map.
• January 15, 2022: Gov. Tom Wolf (D) vetoed the congressional map bill, meaning authority for selecting a congressional map was transferred to a Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court.
• January 24, 2022: The Pennsylvania State Senate voted to approve a new congressional map.
• January 15, 2022: Gov. Tom Wolf (D) released a congressional redistricting proposal.
• January 12, 2022: The Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted to approve a new congressional map.
• December 16, 2021: The Legislative Reapportionment Commission approved and released legislative draft maps.
• December 8, 2021: Rep. Seth Grove (R), chairman of the House State Government Committee, released the committee's first congressional redistricting proposal.
• September 16, 2021: The U.S. Census Bureau released data from the 2020 census in an easier-to-use format to state redistricting authorities and the public.
• August 12, 2021: The U.S. Census Bureau delivered redistricting data to states in a legacy format.
• April 26, 2021: The U.S. Census Bureau delivered apportionment counts.

Footnotes[edit]

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