Montgomery County will automatically mail replacement ballots to voters whose mail-in submissions are rejected for common errors.
The election board authorized the updated curing policy ahead of the Nov. 3 general election, Mainline Media News reported. Voters who submit ballots with a missing signature or missing secrecy envelope will receive a new ballot, an email alert when available and written instructions explaining the problem.
Election Board Chair Neil Makhija, a Democrat, said the policy aims to fix a persistent gap. In 2024, 516 of roughly 1,186 deficient mail-in ballots in Montgomery County went uncured. Those votes were never counted.
"Eligible voters should not be disenfranchised due to a small mistake that has no bearing on their registration status," Makhija said.
Makhija also identified a wrong date on the outer envelope as a common mistake, though the source reporting does not make clear whether wrong-date ballots also trigger an automatic replacement.
The policy builds on a process Makhija said originated in Dauphin County. WHYY confirmed that Bucks, Delaware, Chester, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties all follow some form of notice-and-cure process for defective mail-in ballots.
How replacement works
Deputy Chief Operating Officer Mira Baylson described the procedure. The original defective ballot is canceled in the state's SURE election database, marked with a red symbol for easy identification and locked in a secure cabinet. A replacement ships from the county's vendor the next day with a letter explaining why the voter received it.
Automatic replacements continue through Friday, Oct. 30. After that, voters or their designated agents must appear in person in Norristown by Monday, Nov. 2, to cancel and replace their ballot. Anyone who misses that deadline can cast a provisional ballot at their polling place on Election Day.
Republican commissioner questions cost
The policy had bipartisan support, but Republican Commissioner Tom DiBello pushed back on the expense.
"Although I don't agree with … a large portion of the whole curing process because everything comes with an expense to the county, and quite honestly at a certain point I feel that voters have to take responsibility as well," DiBello said.
He did praise one element. The physical red-symbol marking on defective ballots drew his approval: "I appreciate that change to the policy as well," he said.
Both officials acknowledged the legal backdrop. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued a September 2025 ruling that counties must notify voters of mail-in ballot errors and their right to cast a provisional ballot on Election Day. DiBello said having an established curing process is now mandatory for counties statewide.
The policy update was posted on the county website and sent to both the Democratic and Republican county committees, Baylson said.
Two Hatboro polling places relocated
The election board also moved two Hatboro polling places as part of the same county-wide action. Voters in the Hatboro 1 and Hatboro 2 precincts will vote at Lehman Memorial Methodist Church, 300 S. York Road, instead of the Pennypack Community Center at 130 Spring Ave.
Utility problems forced the change. During the primary, a portable restroom had to be brought to the Pennypack site because a water main break left the building without running water, Baylson said. The election before that had problems with power and heat.
Key deadlines
- Voter registration: Monday, Oct. 19
- Mail/absentee ballot request: 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27
- All mail-in ballots returned: by 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, when polls close
Additional information is available on the county's election website at montcovotes.com.
