Elections and Voting

*The most important responsibility we have as citizens is voting. Certain officials, on all levels of government, are elected by the people. Each state has a designated election day for primary and general elections.

-Election Days: According to the Congress of the United States the general election day for federal offices takes place on the Tuesday after the first Monday of November. State, local, and primary election days vary from state to state and from community to community.

How To Vote
*Before Election Day there are some steps that one must take in order to qualify to vote. There are two general qualifications for voting that apply to people of every state; they are as follows:

-You must be a citizen of the United States.

-You must be at least 18 years old on or before the date of the election.

*Each state has other qualifications that it sets for voting. Some of these qualifications are as follows:

-Some states require that citizens live in that state for a specified period of time before the Election Day. Pennsylvania’s residency requirement is that a person must live in the state for at least 30 days before Election Day.

-Some states require its residents to formally register to vote. Pennsylvanian’s must register to vote at least 30 days before Election Day. PA residents can register to vote at the Department of Transportation by filling out a form they can obtain from state or local offices, or by obtaining a downloadable and printable voter registration form online. The website is: http://www.dos.state.pa.us/bcel/lib/bcel/voter_registration/01_staticpage/voterregistrationapp.html




-Some states require its residents to choose membership in a political party in order to qualify to vote in a primary election. Pennsylvania requires its residents to choose membership in a political party to vote in the primary election. PA residents are not required to choose a party in order to vote in general elections.

-Some states require its residents to be free of any felony conviction in order to qualify to vote. Pennsylvania has no such requirement.

-Some states require its residents to be legally sane in order to qualify to vote. Pennsylvania has no such requirement.

-The 15th Amendment prohibits any federal, state, or local government from denying any citizen the right to vote based on race, color, or religious affiliation.

-The 19th Amendment prohibits any federal, state, or local government from denying any citizen the right to vote based on sex.

-The 26th Amendment prohibits any federal, state, or local government from denying any citizen 18 years old or older the right to vote based on age.


*If you meet all the qualifications for voting you are then able to vote in federal, state, and local primary and general elections. You need to be prepared to go and vote. There are a few things you need to do before going to vote:

-Know where you’re going. You cannot vote at just any polling place, there is a specified place you need to go in order to cast your vote. This place is determined by your address.

-Be able to provide official proof of identification. Some polling places will not allow you to vote without proper ID.

-Research the candidates and be ready to make educated and informed choices inside the voting booth.