In Pennsylvania, the nation’s largest swing state, the ballot this year features so-called retention elections, which will determine whether three Democratic justices stay on the seven-member State Supreme Court.
Justices on the high court are elected to 10-year terms in partisan elections, and at the end of the term voters are asked whether to retain them for another 10 years. The court has a 5-to-2 Democratic majority and could play a crucial role in the next presidential election.
Pennsylvania voters will also weigh in on municipal races and local ballot measures.
Here’s what else to know:
How to vote
Polling stations are scheduled to open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. The deadline to register has passed.
First-time voters and those using new polling places must bring a form of identification, such as a driver’s license, a passport, a student ID or a bank statement, according to the Pennsylvania State Department. A list of approved forms of ID can be found here.
Mail ballots must be received — not postmarked — at the county elections office by 8 p.m. Tuesday. But voters who requested mail ballots can also drop them off in person at county elections offices until 8 p.m. Or, if they believe they failed to send their mail ballot in time, they may request a provisional ballot at their polling station.
Where to vote
Voters can find their polling places here. Information about county elections offices can be found here.
What’s on the ballot
The retention elections could influence the ideological tilt of a court that has settled major cases concerning congressional district lines and balloting procedures in Pennsylvania.
The State Supreme Court justices on the ballot do not face opponents, and only a single justice has come up short in a Pennsylvania retention race this century.
Nevertheless, Democrats, wary of threats to their majority on a powerful state court, have focused money and attention on the matter.
See a sample ballot here.
The post Pennsylvania: How to Vote, Where to Vote and What’s on the Ballot appeared first on New York Times.
