YORK, Pa. — The York County Office of Elections and Voter Registration on Tuesday said it informed 166 voters in Jackson Township that they were sent incorrect absentee or mail-in ballots for the upcoming Pennsylvania primary due to a vendor error.
The voters, who reside in the township's 1st Precinct, were informed of the error over the weekend, the Office said in a press release.
New, corrected ballots were mailed to those impacted by the error on Saturday, according to election officials.
The corrected ballots also include specific instructions to the affected voters on how to make sure their ballots are properly counted, officials said.
Elections office staff also called each affected voter to explain the issue and provide appropriate direction, officials added.
Jackson Township's 1st Precinct is split between the 10th and 11th U.S. Congressional Districts, election officials said in a press release. The vendor used by York County to print and mail absentee ballots inadvertently sent the wrong ballot to voters in the 1st Precinct, essentially flip-flopping the ballots meant for the 10th and 11th Districts, officials said.
In the 10th District, incumbent Republican Rep. Scott Perry is running for re-election against a crowded field of Democrats. In the 11th District, incumbent Republican Lloyd Smucker is running for re-election, while Jim Atkinson is running for the right to oppose him in the Democratic primary.
The issue affected all absentee and mail-in voters in the precinct, regardless of party affiliation, according to election officials.
"The York County Elections and Voter Registration Office has canceled the incorrect ballots in Pennsylvania's SURE elections database system to ensure the wrong ballots cannot be counted," the Board said. "Only the corrected ballot sent to voters will be eligible to be counted on Election Day, and no individual will be able to vote twice.
"The York County Office of Elections and Voter Registration strives for 100 percent accuracy in the administration of elections and regrets and confusion or inconvenience that this error may have caused these 166 impacted voters. The county is working with its printing vendor to identify what may have caused the error so that it can be prevented from occurring again."