- Bill McSwain tweeted that his daughter’s mail-in ballot arrived two days after Election Day.
- Election official Lisa Deeley told McSwain that his daughter registered to vote in the wrong county.
- Because of US Postal Service funding cuts, election officials urged voters to request ballots early.
Pennsylvania GOP gubernatorial candidate Bill McSwain tweeted that the state’s voting system is broken after his daughter’s mail-in ballot arrived after Election Day. A state election official responded that his daughter attempted to register as a voter in the wrong county.
“My daughter ordered a mail-in ballot 3 weeks ago and it arrived yesterday – 2 days AFTER Election Day, what a joke! We need to fix this broken system so that everyone can make their voice heard and every legal vote is counted,” McSwain tweeted.
-Bill McSwain (@McSwainPA) November 5, 2021
Lisa Deeley, chair of the Philadelphia City Commissioners, responded that McSwain’s daughter applied to vote on October 17 in a county that did not correspond with her address. The commissioners are in charge of elections and voter registration for the city of Philadelphia, according to the board’s website.
“Your daughter applied to the wrong county on 10/17, it was transferred to us on 10/20 we mailed it to the requested address in West Chester the next day. This issue is the results of the disastrous cuts to the @USPS which underscores the need to accept ballots postmarked by [Election Day],” Deeley tweeted.
-Lisa Deeley (@DeeleyforPhilly) November 7, 2021
As cuts were made to the US Postal Service during the pandemic, Americans began experiencing service disruptions, prompting many to worry about timely delivery of ballots during elections. Officials throughout the country have urged voters to request their ballots as soon as possible, with some states expanding mail-in voting and the amount of time allotted for in-person voting to counteract delivery uncertainty.
Insider has reached out to McSwain and Deeley for comment.
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