Gov. Josh Shapiro (at podium) speaks during a media briefing as Secretary of the Commonwealth looks on in Harrisburg, Nov. 5, 2024. (Commonwealth Media Services photo)
With most polls across Pennsylvania now closed, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt sought to reassure voters that all votes would be counted securely.
“Every legal, eligible vote will be counted and counted accurately, and the will of the people here in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania will be respected,” Shapiro said at a press conference in Harrisburg about 30 minutes after most polls closed.
For most of the day, the election appeared to go without any major issues that would have prevented large numbers of people from voting. However, towards the end of the voting period, bomb threats were called into multiple polling places and municipal buildings where votes would be counted.
While an exact number of in-person voters is not yet known, Shapiro said on-the-ground reports from officials indicate turnout has been high, even for a presidential election. Some polling places are still serving lines of voters who arrived close to the 8 p.m. cutoff.
“If you were in line to vote by 8 p.m., I ask you to please stay in line. You’re eligible to vote,” Shapiro said.
In Cambria County, polls will remain open until 10 p.m. after issues with their voting machines led to earlier delays. Individual polling places elsewhere may also remain open if they experienced earlier administrative issues.
“Every legal, eligible vote will be counted and counted accurately, and the will of the people here in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania will be respected,” Shapiro said.
He said that state and local law enforcement, as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigations, are investigating multiple bomb threats to polling places and municipal buildings across the state. The extent is not yet clear, but the targets included government buildings in Clearfield and Chester counties. So far none of the threats has been deemed credible.
This follows earlier bomb threats in the southern swing state Georgia, which federal investigators have attributed to Russia.
Counting of mail-in ballots began at 7 a.m.. More than 2 million were received across the state. Since the passage of a 2022 law, Act 88, mail ballots will be counted around the clock until they’re all counted. But it may take days to have a final result.
“Please be patient,” Schmidt urged observers. “This work takes time. Accuracy and integrity are the priority.”
Shapiro also urged voters and observers to monitor official sources and be wary of mis- and disinformation.
Official results will be updated as ballots are counted, and will be reported at the Department of State’s official site, electionreturns.pa.gov