Fayette County election officials announce precinct changes
Voters at 11 precincts in Fayette County will be reporting to new polling places for next week’s primary as part of the months-long work by the elections board to consolidate and streamline locations.
Planning for the consolidation plan began last year when elections officials started collecting data at all 77 precincts in Fayette County. They reviewed the number of voters, average turnout for each election and the number of people using mail-in ballots rather than going to the polls, while also reviewing the distance to the nearest voting location in the same municipality.
Using that information, elections officials proposed consolidating 22 polling places into 11 due to their smaller size and proximity to other locations.
After settling on a plan, the elections board held two public meetings and a hearing for public comment, while also posting notices as all the affected precincts over the winter. The plan was approved in February by Fayette County Court of Common Pleas Judge Joseph George Jr.
That reduced the number of precincts in Fayette County from 77 down to 66 starting with Tuesday’s primary election.
Fayette County Elections Director MaryBeth Kuznik said the changes will save taxpayer dollars and help with staffing since it was sometimes difficult to find poll workers for smaller precincts.
“The decision of the Election Board to consolidate these precincts was completely data driven,”
Kuznik said in a written statement. “Declining population and more voters using mail-in voting makes it difficult to keep smaller precincts open when there are other polling places a few blocks to a few miles away in the same city, borough, or township.”
Under the state elections code, every municipality must have at least one polling place, meaning even the smallest boroughs will still have their own separate voting location, Kuznik said. All affected voters have received registration cards with information and the address of their new polling place.
In addition to the precinct consolidation plan, President Judge Steve Leskinen signed an order last week for a temporary polling place change due to the renovations happening at the Markleysburg Borough Building. People in Markleysburg Borough will now vote at the Markleysburg-Henry Clay VFD at 100 Firemans Lane for this primary election.
The permanent changes to the polling places are as follows:
Brownsville Borough 1 (Southside Fire) and 3 (South Hills Terrace) combining into new Brownsville 1 and voting at the Southside Fire Hall at 530 Water St., Brownsville, PA 15417.
Connellsville City 2 (Senior Center) and 3 (Community Center) combining into new Connellsville 2 and voting at the Senior Center (McCormick Avenue entrance) at 100 E. Fayette St., Connellsville, PA 15425.
German Township 1 (McClellandtown Fire Hall) and 3 (Footedale Fire Hall) combining into new German 1 and voting at the McClellandtown Fireman’s Social Hall at 102 Blaine Ave., McClellandtown, PA 15458.
German Township 2 (Municipal Building) and 4 (Adah Fire Hall) combining into new German 2 and voting at the German Township Municipal Building in Edenborn at 2 Long St., McClellandtown, PA 15458.
Luzerne Township 2 (Hiller Fire Hall) and 4 (Allison Fire Hall) combining into new Luzerne 2 and voting at the Hiller Volunteer Fire Department at 911 First St., Hiller, PA 15444.
Menallen Township 2 (Elementary School) and 3 (New Salem Church) combining into new Menallen 2 and voting at the Menallen Elementary School at 8 Pedro Drive, Uniontown, PA 15401.
North Union Township 1 (Clark School) and 5 (Valley 缅北禁地man) combining into new North Union 1 and voting at the R.W. Clark School at 200 Water St., Uniontown, PA 15401.
Redstone Township 1 (Municipal Building) and 3 (Colonial Athletic) combining into the new Redstone 1 and voting at the Redstone Township Municipal Building at 225 Twin Hills Road, Grindstone, PA 15442.
Redstone Township 2 (Recreation Center) and 4 (Fairbank Rod and Gun) combining into the new Redstone 2 and voting at the Redstone Township Recreation Center at 216 Republic Road, Republic, PA 15475.
Uniontown City 1 (Community Action) and 2 (City Hall) combining into the new Uniontown 1 and voting at the Community Action Administration Building at 108 N. Beeson Blvd., Uniontown, PA 15401.
Uniontown City 5 (High School) and 6 (Mt. Vernon Towers) combining into the new Uniontown 2 and voting at the Uniontown High School (Wilson Avenue entrance) at 146 East Fayette St., Uniontown PA 15401.
The polls will be open Tuesday from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. All mail-in ballots must be returned to the Fayette County Elections Bureau office at 2 W. Main St. in Uniontown. A full list of all precinct locations is available on the election bureau office’s office and on its website at www.fayettecountypa.org/230/Election-Bureau.