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Today is the last day to register to vote in the 2021 Pa. primary

Voters 18 and older who are U.S. citizens and have been a Pennsylvania resident for at least 30 days can register to vote online, at their county voter registration office, or at a PennDOT location.

  • By Ximena Conde/WHYY
A voter checks in at the Mount Joy Borough Municipal Office on June 2, 2020. Many polling places were equipped with plexiglass screens to minimize the chance of spreading coronavirus between poll workers and voters.

 Kate Landis / WITF

A voter checks in at the Mount Joy Borough Municipal Office on June 2, 2020. Many polling places were equipped with plexiglass screens to minimize the chance of spreading coronavirus between poll workers and voters.

(Philadelphia) — Monday, May 3 is the last date for Pennsylvanians to register for the primary on May 18.

Voters 18 and older who are U.S. citizens and have been a Pennsylvania resident for at least 30 days can register to vote online, at their county voter registration office, or at a PennDOT location.

Residents registering online have until 11:59 p.m. Monday to complete registration, but county voter registration offices need to have your paper voter registration forms by close of business.

Voting is already underway for those who have already requested mail ballots for the primary. Residents can still apply for mail or absentee ballots by 5 p.m. on May 11.

For those who choose to vote by mail, counties are providing secure drop-off locations for ballots. The drop-off locations for Bucks, Chesco, Delco, and Montcocan be found online. WHYY’s Billy Penn has a map of dropboxes in Philly.

Historically, primaries haven’t had as high a turnout as presidential elections. Still, between four ballot questions and all the statewide judgeships on the line, this primary’s results could influence policy over the next decade.

Included in the ballot questions are proposals that would limit the governor’s powers when it comes to a disaster declaration. To read more about the four ballot questions and what they would do, check out Spotlight PA’s guide.

Voters will decide how to fill a seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, another in Superior Court, and two seats in Commonwealth Court. To learn more about what these courts do and who’s running, check out WHYY’s voter guide to judicial elections.

Additional judgeships in the Court of Common Pleas are up for grabs in Philadelphia and the collar counties.

Philadelphia Democrats will also have to decide whether they want to give District Attorney Larry Krasner another term or if they want to go in a new direction with former homicide prosecutor Carlos Vega.

To get a breakdown of all the Philly races, check out the Procrastinator’s guide to the May 2021 primary from WHYY’s Billy Penn.

WHYY is the leading public media station serving the Philadelphia region, including Delaware, South Jersey and Pennsylvania. This story originally appeared on WHYY.org.

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