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Centre County Board of Elections accepts most flagged ballots, selects precincts for 2% audit
Summary
The Board unanimously accepted 37 date‑issue mail‑in ballots and several other challenged ballots, rejected clearly invalid submissions, counted 16 military/overseas ballots, affirmed provisional ballot adjudications (24 total, one pending ID), and chose Precincts 8 and 78 for the required 2% statistical audit.
The Centre County Board of Elections met May 21, 2026, in Bellefonte and voted unanimously to accept or reject a set of 51 flagged civilian absentee and mail‑in ballots as recommended by staff, while scheduling the county’s 2% statistical audit and upcoming certification steps.
The Board accepted 37 ballots with date issues (11 with no date, 26 with an incorrect date) after Solicitor Betsy Dupuis advised that the Third Circuit has instructed jurisdictions to count date‑issue ballots, though the Pennsylvania Department of State (DOS) recommends separating them for potential future review. ‘‘The Third Circuit currently states to count the date issue ballots but DOS advises to separate them if we need to revisit them in the future,’’ Dupuis said. The Board opened those ballots to be scanned and counted.
Staff reported two ballots that were recreated by hand and counted after one was fully accepted and the other partially accepted; the Board rejected five ‘‘naked’’ ballots (ballots in outer envelopes without a secrecy envelope), rejected one outer envelope that contained neither a ballot nor a secrecy envelope, accepted two ballots whose inner envelopes had identifying marks after review, and rejected one ballot that consisted only of a secrecy envelope returned in the drop box. Three ballots remained pending, requiring the voter to present identification to the Elections Office by the 5:00 PM deadline on May 26, 2026; the Board said the outcome for those ballots would be decided after that deadline. On the staff list, Shannon Johnson identified 51 total flagged ballots for Board review; the Board voted to accept and reject them as listed (motion by Commissioner Steven Dershem; seconded by Commissioner Mark Higgins; unanimous vote).
During a precinct‑by‑precinct canvass of in‑person Election Day returns, the Board reviewed numbered voter lists, result tapes and Election Night reports for each precinct. The transcript records precinct totals across the county; among the higher turnout precincts listed were Precinct 57 with 340 votes, Precinct 68 with 333 votes, Precinct 65 with 324 votes, and Precinct 41 with 318 votes. The Board also opened and counted 16 military/civilian overseas ballots; those ballots were recreated and run through the DS200 tabulator.
The Board reviewed provisional ballots by precinct and recorded rejections for reasons such as ‘‘incorrect political party’’ or being registered in a different county. The transcript shows a total of 24 provisional ballots and one pending conditional on the voter producing identification. The Board affirmed those provisional‑ballot adjudications by unanimous vote (motion by Dershem; seconded by Higgins).
To meet the statutory 2% statistical audit requirement (at least 241 ballots for this election), the Board decided to pool all precincts and randomly select precincts to reach the threshold. The Board selected Precinct 8 (Milesburg Borough, 122 ballots) and Precinct 78 (Spring Township‑North, 244 ballots) to meet and exceed the 241‑ballot target.
The Board published a tentative schedule for closing out the canvass and certification process: a canceled May 22 meeting; pre‑certification of unofficial results on May 26 at 3:30 PM; the 2% statistical audit on May 27 in Room G004; canvass of any remaining overseas/military ballots, additional mail‑in/absentee ballots with newly presented ID, and first signing on May 28 at 3:00 PM; and final signing, SURE Portal signing and certification of official results on June 4 at 2:00 PM. The next Board meeting was announced for May 26 at 3:30 PM.
Kathleen O’Connell of College Township used the public‑comment period to thank the Board and elections staff ‘‘for everything they contributed to Election Day,’’ reflecting public appreciation noted in the meeting record. The Board adjourned at 12:26 PM following routine procedural motions (all motions by Commissioner Dershem, seconded by Commissioner Higgins, carried unanimously).
