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UPDATE 4:00 p.m. FRIDAY 5/27/22

From Allegheny County:

The Board of Elections hearing began at 3:00 P.M. and adjourned at 3:45 PM.

Before the hearing began, 11 of the challenges were withdrawn leaving 19 challenges for the board to hear.

One voter appeared in person to be heard.

Of the 30 challenges, four will not be counted and 26 will be counted. The parties now have two days to appeal the decisions by the board.

UPDATE 3:20 p.m. FRIDAY 5/27/22

From Allegheny County:

The Elections Division today announced that its recount of the votes cast in the Republican Primary for the office of United States Senator, as ordered by the Acting Secretary of State, will begin on Wednesday, June 1, at 8 AM. The recount will occur at the Elections Division Warehouse, 901 Pennsylvania Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15233.

As Allegheny County uses an electronic voting system utilizing paper ballots, all ballots will be recount using a different device than was used for the election. On election day, mail-in and absentee ballots were counted using DS 850 high speed scanners. For the recount, those ballots will be counted using DS 200 precinct scanners. Ballots cast on election day at the precincts were counted using DS 200 precinct scanners. For the recount, those ballots will be counted using DS 850 high speed scanners.

To prepare for the recount, logic and accuracy testing will be conducted on all scanners on Tuesday, May 31 beginning at 12 PM. It is expected to take approximately two hours. Pursuant to the Election Code, that testing may be observed by representatives of the party or candidates affected by the recount. It is not open to the public or press.

Notice of the recount was provided to each candidate and to the county chairman of the party affected by the recount earlier today. As the set-up of the warehouse and the space needed for the recount requires that two rooms be used, each candidate may be present in person and be represented by an attorney or attorney in fact, or may be represented by two attorneys or attorneys in fact. Similarly, the party may send four representatives to be present at the recount.

For the recount, 60-75 full-time county staff will be sworn in on Wednesday morning to conduct the recount. Once scanning is complete, all ballots containing overvotes will be counted manually. It is expected that the process will take approximately two days. Once complete, the results of the recount will be submitted to the Department of State.

The county will be following the procedures outlined in Section 1404(e) and (g) of the Election Code, the Statewide Return and Recount Directive and Procedures, and any supplemental procedures provided by the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

UPDATE 5:10 p.m. THURSDAY 5/26/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board has recessed for the day. It convened at 9 AM and began its reconciliation of the voter lists. That work will continue tomorrow with the board recessing until 9 AM.

Elections staff has completed their work to open precinct bags, and will continue to work through and organize remaining election day materials.

The Board of Election will hold a hearing on the 30 challenged provisional ballots at 3 PM tomorrow at the Elections Warehouse. Doors will open at 2:30 PM for admittance.

The Elections Division continues to make preparations for the recount. At this time, the division intends to do its Logic and Accuracy (L&A) testing on Tuesday, May 31 and to begin its recount on Wednesday, June 1. Additional information on the process, including detail on who has access and the requirements for access will be provided by end of business tomorrow.

UPDATE 3:10 p.m. WEDNESDAY 5/25/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board has recessed for the day.

The remaining 19 ballots from the military/overseas have now been added to the totals and results will be uploaded shortly to the results webpage. As noted earlier, none of those ballots contained votes for McCormick or Oz.

The Return Board will begin its reconciliation of the voter lists when they reconvene tomorrow at 9 AM. There is nothing for campaigns to challenge, and the vote count will not change.

Additionally, Elections staff have ended their work to open precinct bags for the day. Through that process, two more envelopes of provisional ballots – each containing 4 ballots – were found. Only 1 of the 8 is a Republican ballot and the candidates/campaigns have been advised accordingly to determine if they wish to challenge the determination by the Return Board.

The Elections staff will continue opening the precinct bags tomorrow beginning at 7 AM.

Finally, we did receive notification from the Department of State that the Acting Secretary will order a statutorily required statewide recount in the May 17 Republican primary race for a U.S. Senate seat.

As announced, counties may begin their recount as early as Friday but must begin no later than June 1. They must complete the recount by noon on June 7, and they must submit the recount results to the Department of State by noon on June 8.

The Elections Division is currently reviewing the order and what steps it must take before it can begin the recount. We will have those details tomorrow, but do not expect the recount to begin in Allegheny County until next week. When it does, ballots from the precincts (in-person voting) will be counted on the DS850s (high speed scanners) and the mail-in and absentee ballots will be counted on the precinct level scanners.

UPDATE 2:15 p.m. WEDNESDAY 5/25/22

The Republican primary race for a U.S. Senate seat will be recounted, according to acting Pennsylvania Secretary of State Leigh M. Chapman.

FULL DETAILS HERE >>> Acting Secretary of State: Recount required in PA Republican primary race for U.S. Senate seat

Less than 1,000 votes are separating Dr. Mehmet Oz from Dave McCormick.

Counties are required to begin their recount no later than June 1. The recounts must be completed by June 7, and the results must be submitted by noon on June 8.

UPDATE 1:25 p.m. WEDNESDAY 5/25/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board recessed at noon for lunch.

A total of 185 military/overseas ballots were scanned with 13 additional votes for McCormick and 2 additional votes added for Oz. There are 19 ballots that would not scan and need to be re-created on the ExpressVote. Of the 19, only one is Republican and the vote was not cast for McCormick or Oz. Those ballots will be re-created and then scanned and added to the total when the board reconvenes after lunch.

There is one partial count provisional ballot that remains uncounted as it needs to be checked against the voter list where the voter is registered to ensure he or she has not voted. It is a Democratic ballot and will be added to the count once that verification occurs.

The work by the Elections staff to remove ballots from the precinct bags to banker boxes continues and is expected to continue tomorrow as well.

Tomorrow the Return Board will move to its reconciliation of the voter lists. That part of the process does not alter vote counts in any way.

Finally, the Board of Elections will hold a hearing on the challenged provisional ballots on Friday at 3 PM at the Elections Warehouse. The campaigns withdrew their challenge to one of the ballots, leaving only 30 challenged ballots for consideration at Friday’s hearing. Impacted voters are being notified today.

UPDATE 11:10 a.m. WEDNESDAY 5/25/22

From Allegheny County:

The remaining provisional ballots have been completed and counted.

In the Republican US Senate race, 5 ballots were cast for McCormick and 8 for Oz.

That brings the totals, from provisional ballots only, to 103 for McCormick and 71 for Oz.

The only remaining provisional ballots are the 31 that were challenged. The decisions on those will be made at the BOE hearing this Friday.

The Return Board has moved to the civilian overseas/military ballots.

Two representatives – one for McCormick/one for Oz – remain in the warehouse observing.

UPDATE 9:50 a.m. WEDNESDAY 5/25/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board reconvened this morning.

They are completing the 71 provisional ballots that were unchallenged and are partial counts that were not done by the 4 PM recess yesterday.

They are also processing the 194 military and civilian overseas ballots that were received by yesterday’s 5 PM deadline.

There is one representative from the McCormick campaign and one representative from the Oz campaign present.

Separate from the Return Board, elections staff began opening the precinct ballot bags this morning and placing them in banker boxes in preparation of any ordered recount.

UPDATE 4:40 p.m. TUESDAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

A total of 833 provisional ballots were counted today, full and partial, which were unchallenged.

In the Republican US Senate race, McCormick received an additional 48 votes and Oz received an additional 33 votes.

Those results are now available on the elections results page: https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/PA/Allegheny/112982/web.285569/#/summary

UPDATE 4:10 p.m. TUESDAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board has recessed for the day and will reconvene tomorrow morning at 9 AM.

All remaining provisional ballots were reviewed by the Return Board and the candidates’ representatives given the opportunity to challenge. Over the two days, 31 provisional ballots were challenged. A hearing before the Board of Elections is being scheduled for Friday afternoon at the Elections warehouse to hear those challenges. The hearing will be advertised and affected voters will be notified.

An additional three (3) military/civilian overseas ballots were received today, bringing the total count to 194. Those ballots will be opened and processed beginning tomorrow at 9 AM.

With the exception of 71 provisional ballots that were determined to be partial counts with no challenges, all other ballots have been scanned and counted. Results are being uploaded now and will be available on the county’s results page shortly. We will also provide a follow-up email advising of the additional votes added for the Republican US Senate race. The remaining items will be scanned in the morning along with the military/civilian overseas ballots.

Finally, as noted earlier this morning, the warehouse will open at 7:30 AM tomorrow morning. Beginning at 8 AM, elections staff will begin opening the ballot bags from each precinct and placing them in labeled banker boxes so that they are ready for any ordered recount.

UPDATE 1:21 p.m. TUESDAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board reconvened at approximately 1:10 PM. There are six (6) representatives of the McCormick and Oz campaigns participating in the review of the remaining provisional ballots and observing the counting of the others.

UPDATE 12:45 p.m. TUESDAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board has recessed for lunch. They will return at 1 PM.

A full review of the provisional ballots which had been researched was completed with 17 additional ballots being challenged.

There is a tub and a half of provisional ballots remaining downtown which were researched this morning and will be brought to the warehouse for review following lunch.

Also after lunch, the provisional ballots for which there were no challenges that are full count will be opened and processed. As the provisional ballots for which there were not challenges that are partial count are vetted to ensure that the voter did not vote where registered, those will be created using the ExpressVote machine and then opened and processed.

The solicitor will review the list of appeals this afternoon with the parties to determine whether any are being withdrawn. For any remaining, a Board of Elections meeting will be scheduled with notice to the parties and voters who wish to be present for it.

UPDATE 11:18 a.m. TUEADAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

As noted this morning, Elections began processing the 218 mail-in and absentee ballots received timely that were not dated.

Ten (10) ballots were not in security envelopes and cannot be counted – three (3) of them were Republican and seven (7) were Democrat.

Upon opening, two ballots were from the April special election and had been returned in the primary envelopes. Both were Democrat ballots. Those have been removed from the count.

Of the remaining 206 ballots, a total of 36 Republican votes were cast in the US Senate race. McCormick received 17 votes and Oz received 10, with the remaining votes scattered among other candidates. Again, these will not be added to the results page and remain segregated.

UPDATE 10:21 p.m. TUESDAY 5/24/22

From Allegheny County:

The Return Board has reconvened. There are currently ten (10) representatives of the McCormick and Oz campaigns participating in the process. Three tables are set up for review of remaining provisional ballots. It is expected that review will be completed today.

The board is also making the second check on the provisional ballots that had a recommendation that they be partially counted which were not challenged. That process involves reviewing the voter lists from where they person was registered to vote to ensure that no vote was cast at that location. Once that check is done, those ballots will be created using the ExpressVote machines and then scanned and counted.

The Department of State has directed that absentee and mail-in ballots that do not contain a date on the Declaration Envelope should be canvassed and the votes on those ballots should be tabulated separately from all other absentee and mail-in ballots. As noted Friday and yesterday, there are 218 total in Allegheny County. The totals will be available, but will not be added to the results and the ballots and all materials from them will remain segregated. The processing of those ballots has begun.

Finally, the Elections Division will begin opening the ballot bags from the precincts tomorrow morning at 8 AM and placing those in banker boxes for each precinct. That process will be open to observers with the doors opening at 7:30 AM to be signed in.

UPDATE 1:33 p.m. MONDAY 5/23/22

Allegheny County update:

The Return Board began its work at approximately 1:15 pm.

Provisional ballots that are eligible to be counted and were not challenged are being opened and processed.

Five representatives from the McCormick and Oz campaign are present and participating in the process.

UPDATE 12:30 p.m. MONDAY 5/23/22

Allegheny County provided another update:

The Return Board has recessed for an hour to allow everyone to grab lunch. All work has stopped until 1 PM.

The no date ballots were re-counted again today and total 218. At the Department of State’s request, the number by party was also counted. There are 42 no-date ballots from Republican voters and 176 from Democratic voters. That information will be provided to the DOS and the ballots will remain segregated until further direction is provided.

There have been very few challenges to provisional ballots, less than a dozen. Those ballots have been set aside. Ballots where there is no challenge and the recommendation was to open and count will be processed and counted beginning this afternoon.

UPDATE 11:20 a.m. MONDAY 5/23/22

Allegheny County provided an update Monday morning:

Review of provisional ballots began at the Elections warehouse shortly after 10 AM. Currently, there are 15 representatives from the McCormick and Oz campaigns participating in that process. Members of the Return Board are presenting their recommendations on the ballots to the representatives who may challenge those decisions. If no challenges, and the ballots are full count, those provisional ballots will be opened, processed and counted.

Research of provisional ballots also continues at the downtown office. Those ballots, once researched, will be transferred to the warehouse to go through the same process which is currently underway.

There has been no action on the undated ballots. A preliminary count was taken on Friday and provided in that update, as well as yesterday’s. The survey from the Department of State is asking for a party breakdown of those ballots so Elections staff is currently looking up each voter to gather that data.

UPDATE 6:20 p.m. FRIDAY

The Associated Press declared Summer Lee as the winner of the Democratic nomination for Pennsylvania’s U.S. House seat in the 12th Congressional District.

Lee shared this victory message to social media on Thursday:

UPDATE 11:15 a.m. FRIDAY:

The latest batch of results to be released by Allegheny County has kept Dave McCormick in the lead for U.S. Senate over Mehmet Oz in Allegheny County, however, Oz still has a slight lead overall in the statewide contest.

Summer Lee is still on top of Steve Irwin for the Democratic nomination for the 12th Congressional District both in Allegheny County and overall.

UPDATE 11:09 a.m. FRIDAY:

Allegheny County provided an update Friday morning:

Return Board

The Return Board was sworn in this morning at 9 AM by the Chair of the Board of Elections, County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. The staff have begun the work to research the provisional ballots.

In-Person Results

The official result memory sticks are currently being uploaded into the system. We expect them to be available on the results webpage shortly.

Remaining Precincts

The scanners from the 10 remaining precincts which are not reporting will be opened today at 2 PM at the Elections Warehouse, and the memory sticks extracted.

Attorneys, watchers, public and press will be able to enter the facility beginning at 1:30 PM. All individuals should enter through the door designated for media/authorized representative access. Everyone will be expected to go through metal detectors and will need to open bags and other belongings for review by security for access. Once signed in, individuals will be given badges that must be worn while in the facility.

Attorneys and watchers will be in a pen with Elections officials for the opening of the scanners while public and press will be in a viewing area.

Updated Civilian and Military Absentee Numbers

As of this morning, there have been 155 of 321 civilian overseas ballots returned and 13 of 28 military ballots returned. As previously noted, these will be opened, processed, and counted after the deadline for their return.

Outstanding Absentee/Mail-In Ballots

There are 35 absentee/mail-in ballots that were not counted on Election Day. Nine of those were secured in the Elections Office but not transferred to the warehouse. The remaining 29 were opened and had been weighed down to be flattened but were never scanned. The nine will be opened and processed and all of them and counted today. They will be included in this afternoon’s upload of results.

Rejected Absentee/Mail-In Ballots

We had several questions related to rejected ballots or ballots that arrived late. Here is that detail:

· 281 ballots were returned with either no signature, no date, or both

· 658 ballots were returned without a secrecy envelope

· 14 ballots had identifying marks on the secrecy envelope

· 593 ballots arrived after the May 17 deadline and are continuing to come in

· 27 declaration envelopes arrived with no ballots inside

· 2 duplicate ballots were received

· 2 voters have been identified as deceased and those ballots were not counted

· 43 ballots arrived with the wrong declaration envelope

· 2 ballots arrived with the assistance form, but the assistance section on the declaration envelope was not completed

· 5 ballots had various issues (can’t read handwriting, etc.) that have not allowed us to give the voter credit

· 5 ballots from another county were received in Allegheny County

Provisional Ballot Research

As noted, the Return Board has begun the research on the provisional ballots. The number of ballots will continue to increase as equipment returns if provisional ballots were not returned with materials on election night. Return Board staff will also work a partial day on Saturday to continue that work. The expectation is that review of the recommendations on those provisional ballots by the candidates/representatives will begin on Monday, May 23, with additional information related to the time of that forthcoming.

UPDATE 4:30 p.m. Thursday:

Allegheny County provided an update Thursday afternoon:

Return Board:

The Return Board will be sworn in at 9 AM on Friday, May 20 in Room 326 of the County Office Building, 542 Forbes Avenue, in downtown Pittsburgh. After the board is sworn in, the staff will be charged with beginning doing the research and investigation into the provisional ballots so that recommendations may be presented. That work is expected to take several days with presentation of recommendations on those ballots probably beginning Monday. There were 1,964 provisional ballots cast.

Remaining In-Person Results:

Once the Return Board is sworn in, the Department of Information Technology will upload the election results from the official results memory sticks. All results on the elections website will switch from the unofficial results (Election Day results) to the official results from which the Return Board will work. As noted yesterday, 21 of the precincts that were previously not reporting are in hand, so that upload will include results from those precincts.

Two additional precincts also had memory sticks in their materials, but the sticks were removed early from the machines by the local board. The division will need to close the machines and save the data again before those results can be imported. Dave Voye, the Division Manager, will explain to candidates, attorneys or watchers present tomorrow how that process will be handled to allow for any input or concerns to be raised.

The scanners for the remaining eight precincts are either in the possession of the warehouse already or will be in their possession by the end of day today. Accordingly, the Return Board will convene at the Elections Division Warehouse, 901 Pennsylvania Avenue, Pittsburgh 15233, at 2 PM to open those machines and remove the memory sticks.

Civilian Overseas and Military Absentee:

Voters who qualify as civilian overseas and military who vote by absentee have until 5 PM on Tuesday, May 24 to return their ballots. There were 321 applications for civilian overseas voters approved and, to date, 140 have been returned. There were 28 applications for military voters approved and, to date, 11 have been returned. Those will be opened, processed and counted after the May 24 deadline.

Candidates and Candidate Representatives:

Section 2650 of the Election Code governs candidates, watchers or attorneys at sessions of the county board. Every candidate shall be entitled to be present in person or by attorney in fact and to participate in any proceeding before any board where matters which may affect candidacy are being heard. Watchers must be county residents while there are no such requirements for attorneys.

Watchers or attorneys for candidates should be prepared to provide a letter on campaign letterhead signed by the candidate designating the person accordingly. Representatives of parties may participate by presenting a letter on letterhead signed by the chair designating the person accordingly. Each participant will be required to sign in and out during their participation.

Viewing of the Return Board process is open to everyone.

In Summary:

Friday, May 20, 2022 – 9 AM

Allegheny County Elections Division 326 County Office Building, 542 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219

• The Return Board will be sworn in and staff will be directed to begin the background research on the provisional ballots cast in the election.
• The division manager will explain process and current status to candidates, watchers and attorneys.
• The Department of Information Technology will upload the results from the official results memory sticks, replacing the unofficial results posted on Election Day.

Friday, May 20, 2022 – 2 PM Allegheny County Elections Warehouse 901 Pennsylvania Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15233

• The eight scanners with memory sticks in them will be opened and the sticks extracted, after which results will be uploaded and added to the results page

The press and the public may view any part of the process from a designated public-viewing area.

Candidates may participate in any part of the process. Watchers and attorneys may participate in any part of the process after providing the necessary authorizations. Watchers must be county voters.

Future Steps:

Further updates on next steps and schedules will be provided tomorrow by EOB as it is heavily reliant upon each day’s progress.

UPDATE 4:40 p.m. Wednesday

Some Allegheny County voters are expressing frustration over a shortage of paper ballots at some polling locations.

Both Republican and Democrat voters say it happened to them during Tuesday’s Primary.

They were forced to either wait for more ballots to be brought in from the main headquarters in the city OR use the express vote machine as a backup.

WPXI’s Mike Holden is getting to the bottom of the issue and finding out why this happened and the effort to make a permanent fix ahead of the next election for Channel 11 News starting at 5.

UPDATE 11:39 a.m. Wednesday

Allegheny County provided an update Wednesday morning:

All mail-in and absentee ballots that were received by 8 PM last night have all been counted and are already included in the totals reporting on the website. They were added in the 11 PM upload. That includes the approximately 2,000 that were returned in-person by voters to the Elections office yesterday, and the approximately 500 that were in the mail pick-up at 7:30 PM.

Military voters have until next Tuesday to return their ballots. Any ballots received will be added as part of the Election Board process. We do not have any estimate on that number.

The website currently reflects that there 1,290 of 1,323 precincts reporting. The number of precincts reporting is actually 1,292. As we do each election, there is testing and parallel reporting to check our processes. The results page doesn’t know that and so believes that two precincts have not fully reported. And after my last update to you last night, Monroeville 02-01 was uploaded and added to the results page.

Here are the 31 precincts for which in-person votes are outstanding: Duquesne 03-02; Elizabeth Township 01-01 and 07-00; Franklin Park 03-01; Homestead 01-01; McKees Rocks 02-01 and 03-03; Millvale 00-02; North Versailles 02-01; Pittsburgh 01-01, 05-06, 10-17, 12-02, 12-09 12-12, 12-16, 13-01, 14-03, 19-22, 19-31, 27-03, 28-10, 31-03, 32-03 and 32-06; Ross 01-01; Scott 05-02; Versailles 00-02; West Deer 00-05; and West Mifflin 00-04 and 00-14. We will do our best to give you some estimates of universe later today, but will not have any exact numbers for you.

Of the 31 precincts, 30 of them did not have the memory sticks returned to the regional reporting center. They are instead locked and secured inside the scanners, in the polling places. It takes six days for us to get equipment out and six days to get it back. As those scanners are returned, the scanners will be unsealed and the memory sticks taken out, maintaining the chain of custody throughout. The 31 precinct did not report due to a failure of the memory stick. For each scanner, there are two memory sticks – one unofficial, one official. If the other stick should also fail, the paper ballots would be rescanned.

Finally, election results will not change until Friday at the earliest when the Return Board is sworn in and begins their work. The board will be sworn in at 9 AM on Friday at the election offices in the County Office Building as most of Friday will be spent doing the legwork, research and organizing necessary for the review of provisional ballots. The bulk of the Board’s work will be done at the Elections Warehouse. Regardless of location, that process can be viewed by the press and the public, and parties and candidates can participate in it. More information on our schedule, including what will need to be presented by parties or candidates, will be in a communication later today.

UPDATE 8:15 a.m.

Oz’s campaign manager tweeted Wedensday morning, saying they’re “optimistic Dr. Oz will win.”

UPDATE 12:35 a.m.

Moments after Steve Irwin said there will not be a winner tonight, his opponent Summer Lee declared victory in the Pennsylvania 12th Congressional District.

“Today, the people took on the corporations and the people won,” Lee said in a press release.

As of this update, there are still 132 precincts to be counted, according to the Associated Press.

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey tweeted congratulatory message to Lee as well.

Neither the Associated Press or NBC News have declared a winner in the race.

UPDATE 12:05 a.m.

Steve Irwin, Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives 12th District, just told supporters in Pittsburgh that the vote totals will not be complete tonight.

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST ELECTION RESULTS

UPDATE 12:00 a.m. Wednesday

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials (their final update for the night):

Currently, we have 1,289 precincts reporting of the 1,323 in the county.

Of those remaining (32), there are 31 for which materials were returned but the memory sticks are not contained with those materials. Instead, they were left in the scanners and will need to be manually retrieved from those when the equipment is picked up from the polling place. A single memory stick failed when it was read. The second stick will be read when the Return Board convenes.

All mail-in and absentee ballots have been counted and are posted in the online results.

There will be few updates from us tomorrow. There is just a skeleton staff on in the Elections office tomorrow due to the long day today. I’ll provide an update on Thursday with more detailed information on next steps, but the Return Board will convene on Friday morning at 9 AM to begin its work.

UPDATE 11:50 p.m.

Dr. Mehmet Oz just spoke to his supporters in eastern Pennsylvania and he also stated that there won’t be a result in the race tonight.

UPDATE 11:35 p.m.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dave McCormick just addressed supporters at his watch party in Pittsburgh. He acknowledged that the race would not be called tonight as it is too close to call.

UPDATE 11:25 p.m.

Summer Lee just pulled ahead of Steve Irwin and now leads by just 40 votes for the U.S. House of Representatives District 12 Democratic primary. The race appears to be coming down to the wire with 86% or precincts reporting.

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST ELECTION RESULTS

UPDATE 11:10 p.m.

Congressman Conor Lamb released the following statement following his defeat this evening:

“I entered this campaign knowing it would be tough, but I believed Democratic voters in Pennsylvania deserved a primary campaign with a real debate focused on the issues so that we win in November. Today, voters made it clear that John Fetterman is their choice to carry that effort forward. I respect their decision and congratulate the Lieutenant Governor on his victory. I hope that John has a speedy recovery from his stroke and from today’s surgery, and that he can return to the campaign trail soon.

Our entire democracy is on the line in November. Democrats need to be unequivocally united in our defense of this democracy, and we will be. John’s vote in the Senate is essential to protect this democracy, and he will have my vote in November. I will do everything I can to help Democrats win.

I want to thank my campaign staff, our volunteers, supporters, and everyone all over Pennsylvania who was willing to hear me out and give me a chance. I am incredibly proud of the campaign we ran and the way we never stopped working to bring people together. I think of myself as the most optimistic Democrat in Pennsylvania — because I’ve seen what we can do in the toughest races when we focus on building common ground with everyone we can. I’ve seen us win tough elections that way, and I also think that is how we will restore people’s faith in democracy itself.”

UPDATE 10:50 p.m.

The Associated Press has projected the winner for both the Democratic and Republican candidates in the U.S. House of Representatives 17th District to replace Congressman Conor Lamb.

Jeremy Shaffer will be the Republican nominee and Chris Deluzio will be the Democratic nominee.

Lamb lost the Democratic endorsement for U.S. Senate to Lt. Gov. John Fetterman this evening.

UPDATE 10:35 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

The last update brought total votes reporting to about 267,000 votes reporting (88% of precincts - 1,170 of 1,323). The next update will be around 11 PM and will include the final mail-in and absentee ballots from the 7:30 PM mail pick up and the ballots returned by voters to the County Office Building today.

UPDATE 10:30 p.m.

The U.S. Senate Republican primary race is too close to call, with Dave McCormick leading Mehmet Oz by a few thousand votes. We’re watching this race closely and will have LIVE UPDATES on Channel 11 News starting at 11 p.m.

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST ELECTION RESULTS

UPDATE 10:10 p.m.

The Associated Press projects that Austin Davis has won the Democratic nomination for Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor.

UPDATE 9:40 p.m.

NBC News projects that Doug Mastriano will win the Republican primary for Pennsylvania Governor. Mastriano was endorsed by former President Donald Trump.

UPDATE 9:35 p.m.

President Joe Biden joined fellow Democrats in celebrating John Fetterman’s victory in Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate race.

UPDATE 9:30 p.m.

U.S. Senator Bob Casey has endorsed John Fetterman for U.S. Senate. The endorsement came after Fetterman was announced to win the U.S. Senate race in P.A. at approximately 9:00 p.m.

“Tonight, I’m proud to endorse my friend, Lt. Governor John Fetterman, to represent Pennsylvania alongside me in the U.S. Senate. Among a talented, experienced field of candidates, Pennsylvania Democrats chose John to help defend and expand the Senate majority. No matter who wins the Republican primary, the Republicans in this race have shown Pennsylvanians that they’re more interested in genuflecting to the former President and his Big Lie than fighting to make the Commonwealth a better place to live and raise a family. In contrast, John is a tireless advocate for working families who has never backed down from a fight. We need his voice in the Senate, and I’m going to do everything I can over the next six months to flip this seat blue and elect John in November,” said Casey.

UPDATE 9:25 p.m.

Acting Secretary of State, Leigh M. Chapman reports that 70% of the mail-in ballots the state sent out were returned with votes cast this morning. The state sent out 900,000 mail-in ballots, 800,000 of those were no-excuse mail-in ballots and the other 100,000 were absentee ballots.

The state received around 1,100 calls through their voter helpline, most of which asked about voter registration status and polling locations.

UPDATE 9:10 p.m.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro has won the Democratic nomination for governor, the AP projects.

UPDATE 9:05 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

The first in-person votes are now reporting. We expect ongoing updates approximately every half hour afterward.

UPDATE 9:00 p.m.

The Associated Press is now also calling the Democratic primary U.S. Senate race for PA Lt. Governor John Fetterman.

UPDATE 8:55 p.m.

NBC News is projecting that Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman will win the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate.

UPDATE 8:35 p.m.

As election results continue to come in, we’re breaking down the most critical races tonight. CLICK HERE to watch NightTalk LIVE in the WPXI Now streaming app.

UPDATE 8:30 p.m.

Channel 11′s Ryan Houston is at Dave McCormick’s campaign watch party in East Liberty. McCormick hasn’t arrived yet, but should be there within the hour.

UPDATE 8:10 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

The polls are now closed.

Anyone already in line to vote will be able to do so before the poll is closed down.

There have been 90,909 mail-in and absentee ballots scanned. Another 467 ballots were received from the post office and as indicated in an earlier update, approximately 1,000 had been returned by voters to the County Office Building today. Those will be processed like all of the others and added to the total later today.

UPDATE 8:00 p.m.

Polls across Pennsylvania are now closed! We’re just a short time away from getting some of the early results. CLICK HERE for the latest results!

UPDATE 7:02 p.m.

The polls are open for one more hour. Allegheny County said anyone in line when the polls close at 8 p.m. will be allowed to vote.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m.

The Fetterman campaign just released the following statement:

“John Fetterman just completed a successful procedure to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator. The procedure began at 3:15pm, John was released at 5:56pm, and he has been given the all-clear that it was successful. He is resting at the hospital and recovering well. John continues to improve every day, and he is still on track for a full recovery.”

Fetterman also tweeted, saying he got the “all-clear” and thanking everyone for the well wishes.

Pennsylvania President Pro Tempore of the Senate Jake Corman will temporarily assume lieutenant governor duties until Fetterman may return to his role four days after a written declaration is sent by his office to the General Assembly saying that no disability exists after the procedure.

UPDATE 6:05 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

All morning mail has now been opened and scanned and added to the totals from earlier today. As of 6 PM, there are 90,753 ballots scanned.

The Elections Division has approximately 1,000 ballots that have been returned to the County Office Building downtown. Voters have until 8 PM to return those and after polls close, they will also be transported to the warehouse for counting.

There are approximately 100 ballots that were damaged in the opening of the envelopes which are being recreated on the ExpressVote machines. Those ballots will be scanned and added to the totals when complete.

Finally, the Elections Division will be going to the post office around 7:30 PM for a final mail pickup. Those ballots will be checked in, opened, scanned and added to the totals when complete.

No authorized representatives remain in the warehouse at this time.

Polls are open until 8 PM. Anyone in line at that time will be allowed to vote.

UPDATE 5:35 p.m.

Channel 11′s Amy Hudak got an update on the ballot shortage in Allegheny County. Officials say there is a shortage of both Republican and Democratic ballots. Everyone will be able to vote on an express voting machine, the county says.

UPDATE 4:50 p.m.

Multiple polling stations in Stowe Township are reporting a shortage of ballots for their primary election day.

One polling location in Hanover Heights only received 10 Republican ballots and several other reported only receiving 20.

Stowe Township Council President, Robin Parilla says that some voters have been turned away as a result of the shortage.

Allegheny County says that the poll shortages are the result of a higher voter turnout than they expected. Ballot shortages are impacting both democratic and republican voters across the area.

CLICK HERE for the latest on this developing story.

UPDATE 4:30 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

Mail-in/Absentee Ballots:

As of 4 PM, 78,896 ballots have been scanned.

We estimate that there are approximately 350-500 which have been returned to the County Office Building today. Those will be brought to the warehouse after polls close and processed then.

UPDATE 3:30 p.m.

Here’s the latest update from Allegheny County officials:

Mail-in/Absentee Pre-Canvassing

The 14 trays of mail received today from the post office had 5,234 ballots. They’ve all been date/time stamped and are being entered into the SURE system and then being processed.

As of 2:20 PM, there have been 40,551 ballots scanned. One authorized representative remains in the warehouse observing the process.

In-Person Voting

Elections continues to respond to requests from polling places. A few reports of concerns outside of polling places have come in but all have been resolved:

• Campaign volunteers in Pine were campaigning too close to a polling place and were asked to move back from the location;
• In Richland, a utility closed a road near a polling place; one-lane access was restored;
• In Pittsburgh, a tree cutting crew was obstructing a polling place and had to be moved;

And finally, a late report, but a White Oak 00-06 did not open this morning until 11 AM. This was not reported to Elections until media inquired into it after which we verified the report.

UPDATE 3:00 p.m.

Lt. Governor John Fetterman will undergo a procedure to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator, his campaign announced moments ago.

They released the following statement:

“John Fetterman is about to undergo a standard procedure to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator. It should be a short procedure that will help protect his heart and address the underlying cause of his stroke, atrial fibrillation (A-fib), by regulating his heart rate and rhythm”

UPDATE 12:25 p.m.

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman cast his primary election vote from Penn Medicine Lancaster General Hospital using an emergency absentee ballot.

Earlier today, Fetterman’s wife, Second Lady Gisele Fetterman, placed her vote in-person at a polling place in Braddock.

UPDATE 12:41 p.m.

Voters are trickling in to their precinct in Greensburg. Westmoreland County is expecting a turnout of about 32% today.

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey also officially sealed his support for Rep. Summer Lee (D), who is running for Congress.

UPDATE 12:27 p.m.:

Channel 11′s Nicole Ford is in Cranberry Township, Butler County.

UPDATE 11:33 a.m.:

The latest update from Allegheny County:

“There were 14 trays of mail received today from the post office which is approximately 4,500-5,000 ballots. The mail is being time/date stamped and, once complete, they’ll start logging the receipt of those ballots into the system.

Scanning of ballots began at 11 AM as did the re-creation of any ballots that were damaged during the opening process. Three authorized representatives remain in the warehouse observing the process.”

UPDATE 10:00 a.m.

Allegheny County provided their hourly update:

A spokesperson said all privacy envelopes have been opened. Staff are now extracting, opening and flattening ballots. As of 4 p.m., the county received 86,515 ballots back. There are three authorized representatives in the warehouse observing the process.

They also gave an update on the Ross Township polling place opening late. “As noted in the last update, Ross 01-04 was not open. The person who was to open the building arrived to let elections officials into the building shortly before 9 AM. Elections was notified of the issue before 7 AM and was pursuing all options, up to and including contacting the Courts for an order to have the Sheriffs enter the building when the authorized individual showed up to open it.”

UPDATE 8:43 a.m.

Second Lady Gisele Fetterman voted for her husband, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. and Senate candidate John Fetterman.

She said he’s doing well and that’s what matters most. He will be voting later today.

UPDATE 8:31 a.m.:

Attorney General and Democratic governor candidate Josh Shapiro has tested positive for COVID-19.

Shapiro was to join State Rep. Austin Davis in Pittsburgh Tuesday night for a primary night watch party.

“On Monday evening, after taking a precautionary test ahead of his trip to Johnstown and Pittsburgh, Attorney General Josh Shapiro tested positive for COVID-19. Attorney General Shapiro is currently experiencing mild symptoms, and he plans to continue his work of serving the people of Pennsylvania as he isolates at home.

“Attorney General Shapiro will be back on the campaign trail next week and will kick off the general election campaign in Johnstown.”

UPDATE 8:07 a.m.

US Rep. and Senate candidate Conor Lamb (D) arrives to voting precinct in Mt. Lebanon.

UPDATE 8:00 a.m.

A spokesperson for Allegheny County provided the following update:

“Pre-canvassing of the mail-in and absentee ballots began at the Elections Warehouse at 7 AM. Currently, the team is about 2/3 through the opening of the declaration envelopes.

There are currently two authorized representatives in the warehouse observing the process.

For in-person voting, as is usual with 1,323 polling places, we have had reports of several late opens at polling places in Pittsburgh, East Pittsburgh, West Deer and Monroeville. Elections is responding to each of them.

A location in Tarentum was not opened by the building owner/manager until late, and a second location in Ross has still not opened as Elections has been unable to reach someone to open the polling place.

We also received a number of call offs due to COVID and have deployed workers from the bullpen to assist in those locations.”

UPDATE 7:00 a.m.

Polls are now open.

Voting in person

Anyone who plans on voting in person should be aware of where their polling location is. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

If you need to know where your polling location is, you can look it up online.

Click here to find your polling location.

Voting by absentee ballot

If you are planning to vote in person but an emergency or unexpected situation prevents you from doing so, it is possible to request an emergency absentee ballot.

These ballots can be requested after 5 p.m. Tuesday and must be submitted no later than 8 p.m.

Click here to learn more about emergency absentee ballots.

Voting by mail

All mail-in ballots must also be taken to ballot return sites by 8 p.m.

Click here to find the ballot return site closest to you.

If you have any questions or concerns on election day you can reach out to the Election Protection hotline at: 866-OUT-VOTE. The Election Protection hotline is a nonpartisan organization.

Hotline assistance is also available in Spanish at 888-VE-Y-VOTA; in Asian languages at 888-API-VOTE; and in Arabic at 844-YALLA-US.

Candidates making final push to earn votes before Tuesday’s Pennsylvania primary election

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