So you have filled out your application for your no-excuse, absentee mail ballot in Pennsylvania. And your dutiful county election office approved your request and sent you the ballot materials.

And it has sat there on your kitchen table gathering dust.

Congratulations! You’re a procrastinator. So am I.

I applied for a mail ballot for the expressed purpose of writing an article about it. That was about three weeks ago.

Here we are with just eight days remaining until the general election. Kids, it’s time for us procrastinators to get this done.

Why Today?

“I’m a procrastinator,” you say. “I still have time.”

No, you don’t. Especially if you choose to give your completed ballot, secrecy envelope and signed outer envelope to your friendly neighborhood postal worker on their daily rounds.

With the expected late crush of mail ballots, if you wait much longer, there is no guarantee that your completed ballot will be in the hands of election officials by the time polls close at 8 PM on Election Night.

“As in past elections, the Postal Service is ready to deliver your ballot on time. But don’t delay. If you choose to vote by mail, please mail early as every day counts,” the USPS said in a memo shared Monday, eight days before Election Day.

Even for ballots postmarked after Tuesday, the release noted, USPS will continue to deploy “extraordinary measures,” which are standards to accelerate delivery that started Oct. 21.

Well, you mention, my envelope has a postmark with the official time and date it was processed by the USPS.

As Lee Corso would say on ESPN’s College Gameday, ‘Not so fast, my friend.’

USPS postmarks mean nothing in this case. Your ballot must be received AT the Election Office by 8 PM, not postmarked by 8 PM. If you fear that your ballot will not make it in time, you can always hand-deliver it to your county’s election office or a drop box near you if available.

The Process

Hopefully I have convinced you to open up your ballot materials today and complete the task. Now what?

My envelope contained four more pieces of paper: 1) Official Ballot Return Envelope; 2) Official Election Ballot Secrecy Envelope; 3) Two-sided Instructions (English and Spanish); 4) Official Ballot.

Instructions

Read this next. The instructions explain exactly what needs to be done to make your ballot count!

The Ballot

Please use a black or blue ink pen to mark your ballot. Any other color may cause the optical scanner to not read your vote.

Mark the box for your choice with a cross (X), checkmark or completely filling in the box. I recommend filling in the box completely. While neatness is a virtue, a scribble outside the box will not disqualify your vote.

The Secrecy Envelope

Now we get down to the nitty gritty. It’s big, it’s bright, it’s the secrecy envelope. You MUST- I repeat, MUST – place your completed ballot into the secrecy envelope and seal the envelope. Your vote may be disqualified if you do not complete this task. Please, please, please use the secrecy envelope.

Outer Envelope (Front)

This envelope is VERY, VERY important as well. On the front, you may wish to put your return address but that is not required. Be aware though! First-class postage is required.

Outer Envelope (Back)

If you know anything about Pennsylvania politics, you are familiar with our never-ending debate about the signature and date on the outer return envelope.

The instructions are simple. Seal your ballot in the yellow envelope that says “Official Election Ballot.” Then seal that envelope inside this envelope.

Sign and date.

Once again, sign … and date. Please use the date that you complete the ballot. The first two digits for month would be either “10” or “11,” while the numbers needed to complete for day would be “28,” “29, “30,” “31,” “01,” “02,” “03,” “04,” or “05.” The year is already on the envelope.

To repeat, use one of these to reflect the date you completed your ballot:

• 10-28
• 10-29
• 10-30
• 10-31
• 11-01
• 11-02
• 11-03
• 11-04
• 11-05

Why is this important? At least one voter in Pennsylvania used a European style of today’s date which is day-month-year which invalidated the mail ballot.

The Final Step

You must either mail or return the ballot yourself. If you lose your ballot or make a mistake, contact your local election office immediately.

If you return your voted mail ballot by 8 p.m. on Election Day, you cannot vote in-person at your polling place.

If you bring your mail ballot and return envelope to your polling place, you can vote in-person at your polling place.

If you do not bring your mail ballot and return envelope to your polling place, you can only vote a provisional ballot at your polling place.

I’m Done. Now What?

Thank you for casting your vote and being a part of our continuing American experiment. I wish I could tell you that the constant flood of advertisements that are inundating Pennsylvanians would stop now. But I can’t. Sorry.