Allegheny County offers multiple ways to cast a vote in advance of the Nov. 5 presidential election. They all involve mail-in ballots, which voters can request until Oct. 29.

Voters who receive a mail-in ballot can return it through the mail or at one of 10 ballot return sites throughout the county, which will be staffed by county employees.

Voters can also request, mark and return a ballot in one visit at any of five satellite election offices. 

Jump to: How to get a mail in ballot, important deadlines, ballot drop-off sites, “over the counter” voting sites, how to vote in person

How to get a mail-in ballot

To have a ballot sent to your home, request one through the Pennsylvania website. Allegheny County has already mailed ballots out to most of those who have so far requested them and will mail ballots to new requesters on a rolling basis. 

Important deadlines

The last day to request a mail-in ballot or vote at a satellite election office is Oct. 29. Those who receive a mail-in ballot have until 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5, to return it to the county.

Ballots received after that time will not count — no matter when they are postmarked. Any voter who has not yet returned a ballot in the final days before Nov. 5 is urged to return it in person instead of through the mail. 

The deadline to register to vote is Oct. 21.

Ballot drop-off sites

Ballot drop-off sites are staffed and monitored by county elections employees, and ballots are securely transported to the county’s storage facility at the end of each day. They are stored along with ballots returned by mail, and will not be opened or counted until Election Day.

Each voter can only return their own ballot. 

Drop-off sites will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Oct. 29-Nov. 1, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Nov. 2-3 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Nov. 4.

The 10 ballot drop-off sites will be at:

• County Office Building lobby, 542 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh 15219
• Allegheny Emergency Services Building, 150 Hookstown Grade Road, Coraopolis, 15108
• Boyce Park Four Seasons Lodge, 901 Centerview Drive, Plum 15239
• Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh — Squirrel Hill, 5801 Forbes Ave., 15217
• North Park Ice Rink, 1200 Pearce Mill Road, Wexford 15090
• South Park Ice Rink, 30 Corrigan Drive, Bethel Park 15102
• Dormont Pool, 1801 Dormont Ave., Pittsburgh 15216
• CCAC Homewood, 701 N. Homewood Ave., Pittsburgh 15208
• Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank, 1 N. Linden St., Duquesne 15110
• Avalon Public Library, 317 S. Home Ave., Pittsburgh 15202

'Over the counter' voting sites

At satellite election offices, voters can receive a mail-in ballot, fill it out and return it in one visit — with no need to receive or send anything through the mail. 

Days and hours for the five sites vary.

Open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.  on Oct. 15-17: 

• Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall auditorium, 4141 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh 15213

Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 19-20 and Oct. 26-27:

• CCAC Homewood, 701 N. Homewood Ave., Pittsburgh 15208
• North Park Ice Rink, 1200 Pearce Mill Road, Wexford 15090
• South Park Ice Rink, 30 Corrigan Drive, Bethel Park 15102

Open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through Oct. 29, plus 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 19-20 and Oct. 26-27:

• County Office Building, 542 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh 15219

How to vote in person 

Voters can still opt to use their local polling place on Election Day even after receiving a mail-in ballot. To do this, voters must bring the ballot and pre-addressed return envelope to the polling place and sign a declaration that they have not voted by mail. 

If you lost your mail-in ballot or have reason to believe it did not make it back to the elections office, you can ask to cast a provisional ballot at your polling place. After Election Day, the county will verify that your mail-in ballot was not counted, and then count your provisional ballot.

Check the status of your mail-in ballot here.

Find your polling place here.

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Charlie Wolfson is PublicSource’s local government reporter. He can be reached at charlie@publicsource.org.

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How and where to return a mail-in ballot in Allegheny County

by Charlie Wolfson, Pittsburgh's Public Source
October 8, 2024

<h1>How and where to return a mail-in ballot in Allegheny County</h1> <p class="byline">by Charlie Wolfson, Pittsburgh's Public Source <br />October 8, 2024</p> <p>Allegheny County offers multiple ways to cast a vote in advance of the Nov. 5 presidential election. They all involve mail-in ballots, which voters can <a href="https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/OnlineAbsenteeApplication/#/OnlineAbsenteeBegin">request</a> until Oct. 29.</p> <p>Voters who receive a mail-in ballot can return it through the mail or at one of 10 ballot return sites throughout the county, which will be staffed by county employees.</p> <p>Voters can also request, mark and return a ballot in one visit at any of five satellite election offices.&nbsp;</p> <p>Jump to: <a href="#getballot">How to get a mail in ballot</a>, <a href="#deadlines">important deadlines</a>, <a href="#dropoff">ballot drop-off sites</a>, <a href="#satellite">"over the counter" voting sites</a>, <a href="#inperson">how to vote in person</a></p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="getballot">How to get a mail-in ballot</h2> <p>To have a ballot sent to your home, <a href="https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/OnlineAbsenteeApplication/#/OnlineAbsenteeBegin">request one through the Pennsylvania website</a>. Allegheny County has already mailed ballots out to most of those who have so far requested them and will mail ballots to new requesters on a rolling basis.&nbsp;</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="deadlines">Important deadlines</h2> <p>The last day to request a mail-in ballot or vote at a satellite election office is Oct. 29. Those who receive a mail-in ballot have until 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5, to return it to the county.</p> <p>Ballots received after that time will not count — no matter when they are postmarked. Any voter who has not yet returned a ballot in the final days before Nov. 5 is urged to return it in person instead of through the mail. </p> <p>The deadline to <a href="https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/Pages/VoterRegistrationApplication.aspx">register to vote</a> is Oct. 21.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="dropoff">Ballot drop-off sites</h2> <p>Ballot drop-off sites are staffed and monitored by county elections employees, and ballots are securely transported to the county’s storage facility at the end of each day. They are stored along with ballots returned by mail, and will not be opened or counted until Election Day.</p> <p>Each voter can only return their own ballot.&nbsp;</p> <p>Drop-off sites will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Oct. 29-Nov. 1, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Nov. 2-3 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Nov. 4.</p> <p>The 10 ballot drop-off sites will be at:</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>County Office Building lobby, 542 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh 15219</li> <li>Allegheny Emergency Services Building, 150 Hookstown Grade Road, Coraopolis, 15108</li> <li>Boyce Park Four Seasons Lodge, 901 Centerview Drive, Plum 15239</li> <li>Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh — Squirrel Hill, 5801 Forbes Ave., 15217</li> <li>North Park Ice Rink, 1200 Pearce Mill Road, Wexford 15090</li> <li>South Park Ice Rink, 30 Corrigan Drive, Bethel Park 15102</li> <li>Dormont Pool, 1801 Dormont Ave., Pittsburgh 15216</li> <li>CCAC Homewood, 701 N. Homewood Ave., Pittsburgh 15208</li> <li>Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank, 1 N. Linden St., Duquesne 15110</li> <li>Avalon Public Library, 317 S. Home Ave., Pittsburgh 15202</li> </ul> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="satellite">'Over the counter' voting sites</h2> <p>At satellite election offices, voters can receive a mail-in ballot, fill it out and return it in one visit — with no need to receive or send anything through the mail.&nbsp;</p> <p>Days and hours for the five sites vary.</p> <p>Open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.&nbsp; on Oct. 15-17:&nbsp;</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall auditorium, 4141 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh 15213</li> </ul> <p>Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 19-20 and Oct. 26-27:</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>CCAC Homewood, 701 N. Homewood Ave., Pittsburgh 15208</li> <li>North Park Ice Rink, 1200 Pearce Mill Road, Wexford 15090</li> <li>South Park Ice Rink, 30 Corrigan Drive, Bethel Park 15102</li> </ul> <p>Open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through Oct. 29, plus 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 19-20 and Oct. 26-27:</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>County Office Building, 542 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh 15219</li> </ul> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="inperson">How to vote in person&nbsp;</h2> <p>Voters can still opt to use their local polling place on Election Day even after receiving a mail-in ballot. To do this, voters must bring the ballot and pre-addressed return envelope to the polling place and sign a declaration that they have not voted by mail.&nbsp;</p> <p>If you lost your mail-in ballot or have reason to believe it did not make it back to the elections office, you can ask to cast a provisional ballot at your polling place. After Election Day, the county will verify that your mail-in ballot was not counted, and then count your provisional ballot.</p> <p><a href="https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/pages/ballottracking.aspx">Check the status of your mail-in ballot here</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/Pages/PollingPlaceInfo.aspx">Find your polling place here</a>.</p> <p><em>Charlie Wolfson is PublicSource’s local government reporter. He can be reached at charlie@publicsource.org.</em></p> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org/mail-in-ballot-return-guide-allegheny-county-pittsburgh-pa/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org&quot;&gt;Pittsburgh&#039;s Public Source&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/www.publicsource.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-ps_circle_favicon_blue.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=1310555&amp;amp;ga4=G-CCLXQK5C14&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://www.publicsource.org/mail-in-ballot-return-guide-allegheny-county-pittsburgh-pa/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/publicsource.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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