Luzerne County Clears Voter Registration Backlog, Says Crocamo – Wilkes-Barre Citizens’ Voice

Luzerne County election workers tried to process all pending voter registration applications by working late Thursday evening, said County Manager Romilda Crocamo.

In an email sent Thursday afternoon, Crocamo said the elections office had about 1,200 registration applications to process, but the goal was to complete all applications before the end of the business day, which would last into the evening.

The last day to register to vote in the Nov. 5 election was Monday, and Crocamo said at Wednesday night’s Board of Elections meeting that about 2,500 registration applications were still pending.

Now that the deadline has passed, the county will no longer need to process registration applications once all pending applications are completed.

However, that is not the case for mail-in ballots. The county had about 5,300 ballot applications pending as of Thursday afternoon, Crocamo said.

The target date for catching up on ballot applications is this weekend, she said. However, the county will continue to receive ballot applications until the deadline, Tuesday, Oct. 29.

Crocamo said Wednesday evening that employees from the elections office and other county departments have been working nights and weekends to process registration applications and voting requests.

Many of the registration applications are duplicates, from people who were already registered to vote but did not opt ​​out of automatic voter registration when they renewed their driver’s licenses, she said.

Crocamo released a statement thanking Elections Director Emily Cook, Deputy Elections Director Steve Hahn “and all the dedicated elections workers who have tirelessly contributed to the democratic process in our community.”

The statement continued:

“Emily and Steve, along with their team, have gone above and beyond, working long hours to ensure every vote is counted and every voice is heard.

Their efforts not only support the democratic values ​​we cherish, but also inspire confidence in our electoral system. It is because of the hard work of individuals like Emily and Steve that we can feel safe knowing that our elections are conducted with integrity and transparency.

I commend their exceptional service and dedication to our community. Let’s recognize and celebrate the critical role of all election workers who work behind the scenes to ensure our democracy thrives.

Thank you, Emily, Steve and all the election workers, for your remarkable contributions to our society. Your hard work does not go unnoticed and we are truly grateful.”

Originally published: October 24, 2024 at 5:06 PM