2025 PA Election Guide: What You Need To Know

Election Day in 2025 is just around the corner in Pennsylvania, with voters set to hit the polls on Nov. 4.

Thousands of mail-in ballots have already begun streaming back in to county elections offices, while new voters scramble to register ahead of the deadline.

Here's what you need to know.

What's on the ballot

A wide array of local races will be featured on Pennsylvania ballots in 2025, a municipal election year.

That includes township and borough councils, school boards, mayoral races, auditors, some judgeships, and more.

At the statewide level, the only race being contested in the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court. Democrats have a 5-2 majority on the state's high court, but three Democrats are up for re-election, potentially shifting the balance of the long-blue body.

As its the lone statewide race between President Trump's dramatic victory a year ago and the 2026 midterms, the races could be a telling barometer of how one of the nation's most important swing states is aligning itself.

Voting in-person

Polls will be open for in-person voting from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you're planning on voting in-person and are not sure where to go to vote, you can find your polling place here.

What to know about redesigned ballots in PA

Just as they did in 2024, ballots will look different for Pennsylvania voters in 2025 as part of an effort to reduce the number of votes that must be discarded due to errors. It's the latest in an ongoing push to modernize and democratize elections that authorities say have needlessly disenfranchised too many in the past.

The move comes after a similar redesign of the mail-in ballots before the 2024 election that officials say brought good results.

The redesigned envelopes clearly instruct voters what fields must be filled out, and highlight the two spots on the envelope that must be signed. Taking feedback from county elections officials in Philadelphia, Berks, Butler, Mercer, and Greene counties, the envelopes also more clearly identify the fields that must be completed by election workers after the ballot has been returned.

Provisional ballots are used when there is a question or underlying issue about a voter's eligibility. The issue must be resolved before the vote formally counts, so voters cast their ballot using the special form and envelope.

While distinct from mail-in ballots, the two face many of the same issues. The redesigns the state gave to mail-ins before 2024 led to a 57 percent decrease in rejections, according to state department statistics.

Duplicate ballots

State officials confirmed that duplicate ballots were sent out to dozens of voters around Pennsylvania in recent weeks, including in Montgomery, Luzerne, Carbon, and Dauphin counties.

Officials said that the mistakes would not have resulted in any votes being counted twice.

It is not yet clear what caused the errors, and why they occurred simultaneously in separate counties.

Because all duplicate ballots have been cancelled, there is no risk of voter fraud or mistaken ballot counting due to the error, the Department of State said.

Officials are continuing to investigate the incidents.

Voter registration and mail-in ballots

Voter registration is available online here. The deadline to register to vote is at 5 p.m. on Oct. 20.

“For the many eligible Pennsylvanians who have yet to register to vote, it’s not too late to do so,” Secretary of State Al Schmidt said in a statement. “I encourage any eligible Pennsylvanian who is not registered to visit vote.pa.gov, register, and avoid missing out on the opportunity to have their voices heard in this important election.”

Voting by mail is available to all Pennsylvania voters prior to Election Day. The deadline for voters to request a ballot is 5 p.m. on Oct. 28. Mail-in ballots can be requested here.

Ballots are due back to a designated ballot drop-off location by 8 p.m. Tuesday night, Nov. 4.

If you still haven't received your mail-in ballot and Election Day arrives, you can also vote via a provisional ballot at the polls. The provisional ballot will become your official vote once elections officials determine they have not received your mail-in ballot.

Voter rights

If you are heading in-person to a polling place, it's important to know your rights, and what is and is not legal in your encounters with poll workers.You are not required to show identification, according to Pennsylvania law, unless you have never voted at that precinct in the past. Only voters who have never voted at that precinct before are required to show identification, according to Pennsylvania law.

That identification does not have to be photo identification, but it must contain your name and address.

Just because your name is not in the poll book, does not mean you are not registered to vote, according to a release from the Pennsylvania Secretary of State's office. Voting officials should call the county board of elections to confirm your status.

For those who may have limited English language proficiency, the law stipulates that you may bring another individual with you into the voting booth to help out casting your vote.Finally, aside from wearing a mask and staying six feet away from other voters, you can also minimize risk by voting early to avoid long lines to vote.