A Pennsylvania judge has ruled that voters and election officials cannot cure or count mail-in ballots that are returned without the required secrecy envelope, often referred to as “naked ballots.”
In a decisive ruling, Judge S. Michael Yeager of the Butler County Court of Common Pleas dismissed a petition seeking to challenge the Butler County Board of Elections’ rejection of mail-in ballots that lacked the required secrecy envelopes—often referred to as ‘naked’ ballots.
The case arose when two Butler County residents, Faith A. Genser and Frank P. Matis, both failed to include the mandatory secrecy envelopes when submitting their mail-in ballots for the April 23, 2024, primary election.
Despite being informed of their ballots’ rejection due to this omission, both voters proceeded to cast provisional ballots on Election Day, hoping to have their votes counted.