Vibrant Democracy

Allegheny County will continue to run safe, secure, and fair elections, to ensure that every resident eligible to vote has the tools they need to cast their ballots. 

Initiatives

  • Not Started Yet 17% 17%
  • In Progress 67% 67%
  • Completed 17% 17%
Community Priorities

Members of the Allegheny County community value:

    • Increasing voter participation in elections and encouraging all eligible citizens to cast a ballot
    • Providing more information about voter registration, important dates, polling places, and races
    • Recruiting more poll workers to work on Election Day

See the 6 initiatives Accelerating A Vibrant Democracy

6 Month Action Items

1 year action items

Election Information
Multilingual Access to Elections
Launch a large-scale public education campaign to share critical voting information with County residents

Allegheny County will continue to provide more information about voter registration, important dates, polling places, and races.

In Progress

In the past eight months, all Elections Division webpages were revamped to centralize all information regarding elections including:

    • Voter registration
    • Ballot return sites
    • Board of Elections meetings
    • Poll worker applications

There was a significant increase in subscribers with the relaunch of the Allegheny e-News in February 2024. As of August 2024, the subscribership has increased 43% (2,401→3,449) in six months.

This will be a continuous and ongoing effort to make sure the public is well-informed regarding elections and the process.

Learn More
Improve language access so all eligible voters, regardless of the language they speak, can participate

The county will make voting instruction materials available in major languages spoken in the county and partner with the Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law to raise awareness of their voting hotlines, which provide voter support services in multiple languages.

In Progress

The county partnered with Global Wordsmith to determine non-English languages spoken in the county. Based on this information all mail-in and absentee ballot completion instructions and in-person voting instructions are now available in 11 languages. In the future, Allegheny County intends to curate a list of non-partisan groups that offer language services on Election Day.

Accessibility to Voting
ACJ Voting
Poll Workers
Ballot Return and Satellite Voting Sites
Help seniors and people experiencing mobility issues exercise their right to vote by:
  • Educating non-partisan community-based organizations on legal options to assist voters with returning their mail-in ballot, at locations like senior care facilities and nursing homes
  • Distributing media kits to senior centers, care facilities, and high rises to inform facility staff and residents about legal options for returning their mail-in ballots
In Progress

The Elections Division, in partnership with the Office of Marketing and Special Events, continues to streamline the Elections webpages and offer robust social media, print, and digital advertising to highlight the various methods in which individuals can vote. The Elections Division has also made emergency ballot and designated agent information more easily accessible on the Emergency Absentee Ballot Request webpage.

Continue to offer voter registration support to eligible voters currently detained in the Allegheny County jail
  Completed

The county partnered with multiple non-partisan organizations in spring 2024 to conduct a registration event at the Allegheny County Jail (ACJ). On August 15, 2024, the organizations hosted a voter registration event and scheduled another event on September 25, 2024. This effort has been led by the ACJ for the general election and will be a continued effort by the jail.

Make it easier and more attractive for residents to serve as poll workers

Make it easier and more attractive for residents to serve as poll workers by enabling poll workers to split shifts and serve for shorter periods.

Not Started

Though the Elections Division is exploring split shifts for certain positions, there hasn’t been a resounding request for this option because the current pay structure and scheduling model has already prompted a record number of poll workers.

Expand voter access by adding more locations for staffed absentee/mail-in ballot return locations and “over the counter” voting services across the County
In Progress

In April 2024, seven ballot return sites were added for the Primary Election, which were utilized by nearly 2,800 voters.

For the November election, three additional sites will be added along with five satellite offices where residents can register to vote, request a mail-in ballot, complete, and return it all on the spot (commonly referred to “over the counter” voting). Over the counter voting has been available the last several elections at the County Office Building in the weeks leading up to Election Day.

This service will be expanded to four additional locations around the county.

Learn More