Voter Registration Requirements

Below you will find information about voting eligibility requirements in Pennsylvania.

Are You Eligible to Vote?

To register to vote in Pennsylvania, you must be:

A citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next primary, special, municipal, or general election.
A resident of Pennsylvania and the election district in which you want to register and vote for at least 30 days before the next primary, special, municipal, or general election.
At least 18 years of age on or before the day of the next primary, special, municipal, or general election.

Once you have registered to vote, you are not required to register again unless you change your residence, name, or political party affiliation.

Please note that any intentional false statement made on an application for voter registration constitutes perjury and is punishable by law.

Eligibility for Primary Elections

A primary election is an election in which a political party nominates its candidates for an upcoming general election. The rules for voting in primary elections vary from state to state. In Pennsylvania:

You must be registered and enrolled in a political party to vote in that party's primary.
All registered voters are entitled to vote on Constitutional amendments, ballot questions and in all special elections that might be held at the same time as a primary election.

Read more about Primary Elections.

Eligibility for Convicted Felons

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled on December 26, 2000 that the Pennsylvania law prohibiting convicted felons from registering to vote for five years after their release from prison is unconstitutional. Consequently, if completing an older version of the Voter Registration Mail Application (VRMA) form, a convicted felon who has been released from prison may make application to register to vote by striking through the felony conviction line at Section 9(2) on the VRMA and signing his or her name.
Convicted felons who are incarcerated on the date of a primary or general election are not eligible to vote, regardless of whether they are registered. However, pre-trial detainees and misdemeanants are eligible to register to vote and/or to vote by absentee ballot if they otherwise qualify to vote under law.