As of October 6th, 49 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties let you walk into your county election office, get a mail ballot, fill it out and turn it in on the spot, and you can do that through 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 27th. The governor’s race and your state legislators are on the ballot, and those are the politicians who decide whether red flag gun confiscation and so-called universal background checks become law here. Below you’ll find every way to vote and every deadline, Josh Shapiro’s record on guns, and how your legislators voted on the gun bills this session.
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Mail ballots are ready in 49 counties
Your gun rights are on the ballot.
You don’t have to wait until November 3rd to vote. In 49 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, you can already walk into your county election office, request a mail ballot, fill it out and turn it in on the spot. It’s all done in one visit, and once it’s in your county’s hands, it’s done.
And make no mistake, your gun rights are on that ballot. The governor’s race is on it. So is your state representative, and your state senator if your district has a race this year. Those are the politicians who decide whether red flag gun confiscation and so-called universal background checks become law in Pennsylvania. Last year, red flag failed in the state House by a single vote. Every pro-gun vote counts, and a ballot that’s already turned in is one nobody can talk you out of later.
Here’s everything you need to make your vote count, starting with the deadlines.
Every way to vote, and every deadline
1. Register by Monday, October 19th
That’s the last day to register for this election, and Pennsylvania doesn’t have same-day registration. Already registered? Make sure it’s at your current address. Check your registration at vote.pa.gov/Status, or register here.
2. Vote in person by mail ballot at your county office: now through 5 p.m. Tuesday, October 27th
Think of it as a mail ballot you handle in person. Go to your own county’s election office (or one of its official satellite offices), apply, and the county processes it while you wait. Then you mark your ballot, seal it in the yellow secrecy envelope, seal that in the outer return envelope, sign and date it, and hand it in. Bring your PA driver’s license or PennDOT ID number, or the last four digits of your Social Security number.
Each county starts when its ballots are ready, and 18 counties weren’t ready as of this morning. See whether your county is ready here, and find your county election office and its hours here. Some of the biggest counties have added extra locations:
| Philadelphia | City Hall, Room 140, plus 10 satellite election offices, one in each Council District. Weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekends 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Allegheny | County Office Building, 436 Grant St., Pittsburgh, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Satellite sites run 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 7 and 8, and on the weekends of Oct. 17 and 18 and Oct. 24 and 25. |
| Montgomery | One Montgomery Plaza in Norristown, plus five satellite offices open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Oct. 17, 18, 24 and 25. |
| Bucks | Seven on-demand locations through 5 p.m. Oct. 27, including the county offices in Doylestown, Levittown and Quakertown. |
| Delaware | One Voter Service Center, at the Government Center in Media. Staff there won’t take a voted ballot, so return yours at an official drop box or by mail. |
The cutoff is firm: on-demand voting ends at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 27th. If you’re in line at your county office by 5, they have to serve you.
3. Vote by mail from home: apply by 5 p.m. Tuesday, October 27th
You can start your mail ballot application here and apply online with your PA driver’s license or PennDOT ID number, or the last four digits of your Social Security number. Your county has to receive your application by 5 p.m. on October 27th.
Here’s the part that trips people up. Your ballot has to be in your county’s hands by 8 p.m. on Election Day. A postmark doesn’t count. So mail it early, or drop it off at your county election office or at an official drop box if your county has one. Only about 24 of the 67 counties list a drop box, so check your county’s return locations here. You can’t turn in a mail ballot at your polling place.
Two more things. Seal your ballot in the yellow secrecy envelope first, because a ballot without it doesn’t get counted. And sign AND date the outside of the return envelope. Return only your own ballot, too. Even a spouse can’t drop it off for you, unless you have a disability and fill out the form to name an agent.
4. Vote on Election Day: Tuesday, November 3rd
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you’re in line by 8, you can vote. Look up your polling place here before you go. If you requested a mail ballot but would rather vote in person, bring the ballot and its outer return envelope with you so they can be voided. Without them, you’ll vote a provisional ballot.
5. ID: only if it’s your first time at that polling place
Most Pennsylvania voters don’t have to show ID at the polls. If it’s your first time voting at your polling place, bring a photo ID, or a non-photo ID with your name and address. Your firearm permit is on the state’s list of accepted non-photo IDs.
The governor’s race: Josh Shapiro’s record on your guns
Here’s Josh Shapiro’s record on guns, in his own words and actions, going back to his years as attorney general.
As attorney general, April 2018
His office stopped honoring Virginia concealed carry permits in Pennsylvania, effective May 16, 2018. His explanation: “They have weaker standards than us.â€
As attorney general, December 2019
He signed a legal opinion declaring that unfinished “80% receivers†are firearms under Pennsylvania law, and directed the State Police to apply it. The opinion says, “A receiver does not need to be fully manufactured to be a firearm.â€
On the campaign trail, 2022
“We’re going to close the ghost gun loophole. We’re going to enact universal background checks. We’re going to finally pass red flag laws in Pennsylvania.â€
Budget address, February 6, 2024
“Why the hell are we okay with loopholes on background checks that allow criminals to get their hands on guns? Just close the loopholes.†In that same budget, he proposed state funding for an Office of Gun Violence for the first time ever.
Executive order, September 9, 2024
He signed an executive order re-establishing the Office of Gun Violence Prevention inside the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
If you’ve been in this fight for any length of time, you know exactly what “closing the loopholes†and red flag laws mean for you and your guns. Bills on both red flag and statewide gun registration have already reached the state House floor. Here’s how those votes went, along with the rest of your legislators’ record.
Your legislators’ gun records in the General Assembly
Any politician can tell you he supports the Second Amendment. Speeches are cheap. Roll call votes are on the record, so we went through the official roll calls on the bills the Pennsylvania Firearms Association has been fighting for and against this session. Here’s what your legislators did with them.
Your gun rights in the General Assembly, 2025 to 2026
From the official House and Senate roll calls, journals and bill records.
Constitutional carry, state Senate, SB 357
Never got a floor vote
On May 6, 2026, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved Sen. Cris Dush’s constitutional carry bill 9 to 5. Every Republican on the committee voted yes, and every Democrat voted no. Then it sat. Republicans run the state Senate 27 to 23, and Senate leadership never brought SB 357 up for a vote. On June 25th, it was automatically laid on the table under the Senate’s 10-day rule. It can still be taken off the table before the session ends on November 30th.
Constitutional carry, state House, May 14, 2025
Killed 102 to 101
Rep. Aaron Bernstine offered constitutional carry as an amendment to another bill. The chair ruled it out of order, and Bernstine appealed. Every Democrat voted to uphold the ruling, and constitutional carry died on the House floor by a single vote. Every Republican voted against the ruling.
Red flag, ghost guns and Glock switches, state House, Sep. 30 and Oct. 1, 2025
All three failed 101 to 102
- Red flag gun confiscation (HB 1859): failed 101 to 102 on September 30th.
- Ghost guns and undetectable firearms (HB 1099): failed 101 to 102 on September 30th.
- The Glock switch ban (HB 1866): failed 101 to 102 on October 1st.
Every Republican voted no each time. A motion to reconsider was filed on each one, so none of them is dead.
Universal background checks, state House, HB 1593, Sep. 30, 2025
Passed 104 to 99
This is the bill that would end private sales of rifles and shotguns, the bill we’ve called what it is: statewide gun registration. It passed the state House with Republican votes, and it’s been sitting in the Senate Judiciary Committee since October 3, 2025.
The Republicans who sided with Shapiro on Michael Bloomberg’s flagship gun-control bill — Universal Gun Registration:
- Rep. Joe Hogan (House District 142)
- Rep. K.C. Tomlinson (House District 18)
- Rep. Martina White (House District 170)
- Rep. Craig Williams (House District 160)
Gun lockup bill, House Judiciary Committee, HB 2244, June 8, 2026
Cleared committee 14 to 12
HB 2244 would create a new crime of “unauthorized access to firearms.†Every Republican on the committee voted no. On September 8th it was laid on the table in the House, and it can come back off the table on any session day.
Where the bills stand today
Constitutional carry (SB 357) is on the table in the Senate. The background check bill (HB 1593) is in Senate Judiciary. Red flag, ghost guns and the Glock switch bill each have a motion to reconsider on file in the House, and the gun lockup bill (HB 2244) is on the table there. Every one of them stays alive until the session ends on November 30th.
You don’t have to vote in every race
Check your own state representative and state senator before you vote. If a legislative race on your ballot comes down to two politicians who’ve both voted against you, you don’t have to reward either one.
Leaving a race blank is legal in Pennsylvania, and it doesn’t cancel your ballot. State law says your ballot still counts for every office you properly marked.
How to leave a race blank
On a paper ballot: just leave the ovals in that race empty and go on to the next one.
Marked too many in one race? Only that race gets thrown out, and the rest still counts. At the polls, if the scanner flags your ballot, don’t panic. Ask the poll worker to spoil it and give you a new one.
Made a mistake on a mail ballot at home? There’s no scanner to warn you, so call your county election office about a replacement before 5 p.m. on October 27th.
Just don’t skip the whole ballot. A completely blank ballot doesn’t record a single vote, and every race with a pro-gun choice deserves your consideration.
Is your county ready?
The state’s elections page is updated as each county’s ballots come in, so check it before you head to your county office.
| SEE IF YOUR COUNTY IS READY |
You can also check your county’s mail ballot status here.
Don’t wait for November 3rd
Constitutional carry died on the state House floor by one vote, and red flags failed there by one vote. When the margins are that thin, every seat matters. The only thing a politician respects is gun owners who watch the record and show up to vote on it.
So check your registration, see if your county’s ballots are ready, and get your vote in. Then take some family members or a buddy with you, and remember each of them has to turn in their own ballot. Election Day lines get long, mail gets slow, and life gets in the way. A ballot you turn in this week is one less thing that can go wrong.
Your county may already be taking ballots. Go vote pro-gun, and don’t wait.
For Freedom,
Rob Knisley
Political Director
Pennsylvania Firearms Association
P.S. The deadlines that matter: register by Monday, October 19th. Apply for a mail ballot, or vote one in person at your county office, by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 27th. And your ballot has to be in your county’s hands by 8 p.m. on Election Day, because a postmark won’t save it. Sign AND date the envelope. Then go vote pro-gun.