HARRISBURG – On Friday, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania affirmed the lower court’s decision that the Washington County Board of Elections must inform voters if they have made a disqualifying error on their mail ballot packets. Notifying voters that they have made a mistake allows them an opportunity to cast a provisional ballot on Election Day to preserve their right to vote.

The case stems from the board’s decision ahead of the 2024 primary election to conceal from voters that they had made a mistake on their mail ballot and that their vote would not be counted. As a result, voters in Washington County had no opportunity to submit a provisional ballot. All 259 Washington County voters who submitted mail ballots in defective envelopes lost their right to vote in the 2024 primary election.

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania found that the voters’ procedural due process rights were violated under the Pennsylvania Constitution, holding that “providing accurate notice of the errors to the impacted electors” via an automated email was the “minimal process” that was due.

“This is a significant victory for voters in Washington County and across the commonwealth,” said Mike Lee, executive director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania. “When Washington County decided not to notify voters of mistakes on their mail ballot, it wasn’t just disenfranchising them, it was denying them due process. Since the implementation of mail voting in Pennsylvania, ACLU-PA has been on the frontlines to ensure that every Pennsylvania voter can cast a mail ballot with the same confidence that they bring to their polling station.”

“This decision is a win for fairness and transparency in our elections in Pennsylvania. Voters should have the chance to cast a provisional ballot if they make a paperwork mistake on their mail-in ballot envelope so that they can cast a vote that counts. Thanks to this ruling, boards of election cannot detect a disqualifying error on a voter’s mail ballot return envelope and then refuse to tell them,” said Mimi McKenzie, legal director of the Public Interest Law Center. “Boards of elections should be helping voters to ensure their ballots count, not secretly disenfranchising them.”

“CCJ applauds this decision by the PA Supreme Court to reaffirm that voters have a right to due process. Because of this decision, voters across Pennsylvania will not be denied the ability to make their vote count when they rely on mail-in voting — and CCJ is proud to have been part of defending voting rights and democracy,” said Sarah Martik, Executive Director of the Center for Coalfield Justice.

“The Washington Branch – NAACP is thrilled to read the decision,” said David Gatling, Sr., President of the Washington Branch – NAACP. “The right to vote is one of our most sacred rights as Americans, meaning simple errors should never impede that right—especially when the provisional ballot system exists as a safeguard. We were proud to stand in opposition to this outrageous and unjustified action by the Board of Elections, which had chosen to disenfranchise Washington County voters who had inadvertently submitted a flawed mail-in ballot packet.”

“I feel a sense that our judicial system is working and is supporting the voting process,” said Bruce Jacobs, one of the Voter-Plaintiffs who was disenfranchised in this case. “This decision makes me feel proud to be an American, and shows that working through the courts and exercising our First Amendment rights can have an effect.”

The voters, CCJ, and the Washington County NAACP branch are represented by the ACLU of Pennsylvania, Public Interest Law Center, and the law firm Dechert LLP.

You can read more about the lawsuit at https://www.aclupa.org/cases/center-coalfield-justice-et-al-v-washington-county-board-elections/

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