Bucks County voters who made a mistake on their mail ballot still have options to make their vote count before Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Bucks County is one of the majority of Pennsylvania counties that follow a "notice-and-cure" process, according to WHYY. That means the Bucks County Board of Elections notifies voters whose mail ballots were filed with errors and allows them to fix the problem.

The process is backed by a 2025 Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling. In a 4-3 decision, the court found that Washington County erred in not notifying 2024 presidential primary voters that their mail ballots would be rejected, according to Spotlight PA.

Justice Kevin Dougherty, writing for the majority, said the Election Code must be interpreted "in a way that 'favors the fundamental right to vote and enfranchises, rather than disenfranchises, the electorate,'" according to Spotlight PA.

Common errors that lead to rejection include an incorrect date, a missing signature on the return envelope or a missing inner secrecy envelope, Spotlight PA reported. Statewide, roughly 8,500 ballots in the 2024 primary were rejected for one or more of those errors, about 1.22% of those returned, according to an analysis of Pennsylvania Department of State data cited by Spotlight PA.

The ruling has limits. University of Pennsylvania law professor Michael Morse told Spotlight PA the decision was "promising but limited," noting it applies only to counties that choose to segregate mail ballots to identify defects ahead of Election Day.

How to check your ballot status

Voters in all 67 Pennsylvania counties can track their mail or absentee ballot status through an online search tool from the Pennsylvania Department of State at pavoterservices.pa.gov.

Mail ballots must be received by the Bucks County Board of Elections by 8 p.m. on Nov. 3, according to the Bucks County Courier Times. Postmarked envelopes that arrive after that deadline will not be counted.

Provisional ballots as a backup

Voters whose mail ballots are rejected have another path. The state Supreme Court has ruled that if a county rejects a voter's mail ballot, a valid provisional ballot cast by that voter on Election Day must be counted, according to WHYY.

To cast a provisional ballot, voters go to their polling place, fill out an affidavit envelope and receive a provisional ballot. The county Board of Elections then evaluates each provisional ballot at a public meeting within seven days of the election, according to the Bucks County Courier Times.

Contact the Bucks County Board of Elections

Alec Mettin is the Director of Elections for Bucks County, according to the state's election officials directory. The Board of Elections office is at 55 E. Court St., Doylestown, PA 18901. The phone number is 215-348-6154.

Polls close at 8 p.m. on Nov. 3.