2024 Election: Push to get voters out to polls is on in Philadelphia
WEST PHILADELPHIA - With the 2024 election just under two weeks away, the push is on to get people to the polls to cast their votes.
And it was a push, or more like a party to get some people in West Philadelphia out to vote. The Committee of 70 held a pop-up event outside one of the 10 satellite voting offices across the city.
Natalie West said, of the process, "It was super easy."
Registered voters in Pennsylvania have until October 29th to stop by one of the offices, or your county election office to get a ballot printed while you wait. You can also fill it out and drop it right in the box before you leave, with no waiting until Election Day.
"I wasn’t familiar with the fact that you can vote, but my mom told me she saw this, so I rushed down here and saved my day, because November 5th is my birthday," Kim said.
"I know a lot of people are excited to vote in this election and I didn’t want to have to wait in long lines, so I’m glad I get to vote early and make sure it’s secure," Selma added.
Harris-Trump showdown: New national poll shows who has the edge 2 weeks from Election Day
The latest polling is within the margin of error, which means either candidate could potentially be leading the race.
The novelty of Pennsylvania’s ‘On-Demand’ voting is causing some longer lines at some county election offices. But, some love the convenience of voting before Election Day. Most who did it Thursday were in and out in less than 15 minutes.
Andrew Ankamah had this to say, "Honestly, the opportunity to vote early is great because November 5th there are a lot of obstacles people may face. They may have a job or may have school."
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According to the Pennsylvania Department of State, of the 9 million registered voters in the Commonwealth, nearly 2 million requested a mail-in or absentee ballot, or nearly 21 percent. As of Thursday, more than 1.2 million of those ballots have already been returned.
Franchesca stated, "It’s incredibly special. Also, it’s my mom’s first time voting. She just became a U.S. citizen, so it’s kind of a whole family thing. And being able to vote in Pennsylvania, the most important swing state, makes it feel like my vote counts even more."