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Chapman responded to the state representatives in an October 28, 2022, letter that was also made available to members of the media:
The Department shares your concern that only qualified voters vote in the upcoming election. As you should be aware, the processes used to ensure that this is the case are carefully prescribed by both federal and state law. Your claims reflect a misunderstanding of the laws guiding processes surrounding voter registration and absentee/mail-in ballot applications. Further, your claim that counties have mailed "over 240,000 unverified ballots" is incorrect and reflects a misunderstanding of the law and data.
Ballot applications, not ballots
In an email to Lead Stories earlier the same day, the Pennsylvania Department of State (DoS) had already said the claim by lawmakers was inaccurate. (The DoS Office of Communications and Press, not Lead Stories, bolded words for emphasis.)
There are not 240,000+ 'unverified ballots,' as certain lawmakers are claiming. That is misinformation. Any mail-in or absentee ballot from a voter whose identification cannot be verified by the sixth day after the election is not counted.
It's important to note that this discussion about 'verification' relates to ballot applications; we are not talking about ballots. This misinformation incorrectly conflates an application for a mail ballot and an approved mail ballot.
Statewide, voters' identification for about 7,600 ballot applications has not yet been verified, the Department of State told Lead Stories.
Safeguards
The DoS office says a system is in place to assure that ballots by unverified voters are not cast:
(C)ounty election offices are required to provide a mail-in or absentee ballot to any registered voter who requests one regardless of whether they provide proper ID at the time they request their ballot. It's important to know that the vast majority of voters do provide proper ID at that time. In the event a voter's ID cannot be verified during the application process, voter(s) have the ability to submit proper ID for their ballot until the sixth day after the election.
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