STILL COUNTING: County Officials Continue To Tally Ballots Into Wednesday

November 4, 2020

Election workers open ballots in the Bucks County Board of Elections office late into the night on Tuesday.
Credit: Michele Haddon/LevittownNow.com

With an unprecedented number of absentee and mail-in ballots cast this election, Bucks County officials plan on working around the clock to ensure an accurate count.

Just before 2 a.m. Wednesday morning, partial results reported from 228 out of 304 precincts in Bucks County showed President Donald Trump with a strong lead, 124,338 to 93,922, over former Vice President Joe Biden.

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, the incumbent Republican, was ahead with 143,049 votes to Democrat Christina Finello’s 75,541.

And in the attorney general race, incumbent Democrat Josh Shapiro trails behind so far with 93,025 votes to Republican Heather Heidelbaugh’s 119,514.

These unofficial results, posted on the Bucks County Board of Elections website, include absentee and mail-in and in-person ballots. Even among reported precincts, the complete results are not fully in.

Long Lines At Polling Places Across Area

A final tally isn’t expected for days, said county public information director Larry King. While in-person Election Day results should be tabulated by Wednesday, the remaining absentee and mail-in ballots will take longer. In addition, some mail-in ballots have yet to be received, he explained.

Larry King, Bucks County public information director, points to scanning machines displayed on a closed-circuit television inside the Bucks County Administration Building.
Credit: Michele Haddon/LevittownNow.com

In other races, Republican Timothy DeFoor leads Democrat Nina Ahmad for auditor general. And Republican Stacy Garrity is ahead of Democratic incumbent Joe Torsella for state treasurer.

For state representatives races, incumbents Frank Farry, a Republican from Langhorne Borough; John Galloway, a Democrat from Falls Township; and Tina Davis, a Democrat from Bristol Township, all appeared in the lead.

By Monday afternoon, more than 150,000 absentee and mail-in ballots were returned and recorded.

As of 9:30 p.m., around 80,000 to 90,000 absentee and mail-in ballots were opened, thanks to pre-canvassing which began at 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, said Bucks County Commissioners Vice Chairperson Bob Harvie, and roughly 23,000 of those ballots had been scanned.

Voting machines from each of the precincts were also coming in to the Board of Elections office in Doylestown Borough, with their data being uploaded and recorded into the system as well.

Such a large undertaking, Harvie said, is accomplished through the efforts of about 270 county employees from other county departments who signed up to work added shifts over the next few days.

Closed-circuit televisions inside the Bucks County Administration building show election workers sorting and scanning absentee and mail-in ballots.
Credit: Michele Haddon/LevittownNow.com

Closed-circuit televisions inside the administration building showed election workers moving at a steady pace, opening and scanning ballots in rooms flanked by ballot-filled bins. In another area, machine data was being uploaded from flash drives as they came in from each precinct.

“We’re going to keep going around the clock,” Harvie said. “These people are working very, very hard and doing a good job. They deserve more credit for what they do.”