Paper ballots cost Westmoreland County taxpayers $31 per vote

Fewer than 2% of voters chose pen and paper over touchscreen machines in last month’s primary.

By RICH CHOLODOFSKY
TribLive

Fewer than 2% of voters cast paper ballots at the polls during Westmoreland County’s primary election last month.

Election officials confirmed Tuesday that of the more than 32,300 ballots cast on Election Day, just 571 were filled out using pen and paper.

Because the county spent $18,000 to print and distribute 84,000 paper ballots to ensure the option was available at all 306 precincts, taxpayers effectively paid $31.52 for every single paper ballot cast.

The remaining votes were cast May 19 via the county’s 900 touchscreen voting machines.

“We should just stop this now,” Westmoreland County Commissioner Ted Kopas said. “The numbers speak for themselves. It’s a ridiculous waste of money for an option voters aren’t taking to.”

Republican commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew last fall authorized the use of paper ballots at the polls in addition to allowing the continued use of the computerized voting machines that have been used since early 2020 in Westmoreland County.

Responding to a petition submitted by a group of conservative supporters who in the past had pushed unproven election integrity concerns, Kertes and Chew agreed to implement an option for voters on Election Day to fill out paper ballots.

Fewer than 4,000 of the more than 78,000 voters cast paper ballots at the polls during their inaugural appearance on Election Day last November. Voter turnout for that year’s general election — which featured a heavily contested race for U.S. Senate as well as local races for town councils, school boards and county row offices — was less than 43%.

Turnout for last month’s primaries, which featured few contested state and federal legislative races, was less than 24%.

Despite the high per-ballot cost, Chew said he favors continuing to offer the paper ballot option for voters. He said he still views the paper ballot option as a way to prepare voters for what he described as a likely permanent shift away from using touchscreen voting machines in future years.

“All changes need to catch on and be understood by the public. Five hundred seventy-one doesn’t seem low to me. I’m not ready to turn back on paper ballots yet,” Chew said.

Kertes appeared less convinced about the staying power of paper ballots and declined to take a firm position on whether the program will continue this fall.

“It’s always a question. We have to consider it every time, and we’ll talk about it. I’m not saying yes, and not saying no,” Kertes said.

In addition to touchscreen voting and paper ballots submitted on Election Day, nearly another 21,000 voters cast mail-in ballots this spring.

More than 190 mail-in ballots were disqualified because they either failed to include a voter’s signature or were not placed in a secrecy envelope before they were returned to the courthouse. Election Bureau Director Scott Ross said 13 voters cured potentially disqualifying errors before voting was completed and had their ballots counted.

Another 354 mail-in ballots were left uncounted after arriving at the courthouse after the 8 p.m. May 19 deadline, Ross said.

The county’s election board, which consists of all three commissioners, voted Tuesday to pre-certify the primary results. A vote to issue a final certification is scheduled for June 8.