Mix together a primary election in a presidential year with a health pandemic in the first year Pennsylvanians can vote by mail without giving a reason, and add in the sudden April retirement of the county elections bureau director.

That would seem like a recipe for disaster, but the county Bureau of Elections has tackled the problems.

“It certainly has been a trying experience,” said Wil White, county solicitor and overseer of the bureau until a new director is hired. “When you try something new and different there are a few stumbles, but for the most part I'm very pleased with how the staff has responded, and I'm pleased and happy with the temp workers who have just done a yeoman's job down there.”

He said as of Friday morning, the bureau had processed 24,819 requests for mail-in, military and absentee ballots.

In those three categories, 24,795 ballots have been mailed out. White said 24 of those requesting ballots were not eligible because they were registered in a neighboring county, were registered with the opposite party, and other situations.

White said county Democrats requested more remote ballots than Republicans, at 13,714 and 11,047, respectively. Of those ballots, 7,034 Democrats sent their ballots back in; Republicans sent 5,121 back.

Ballots can be brought to the election bureau in the county government center during regular business hours and up through 8 p.m. June 2, Election Day. “As long as they have a photo ID, that's possible,” White said.

The bureau provided Butler Post Office with an image of the outside of the envelope in which ballots are mailed back.

“They created a scan so those envelopes are not going through general delivery,” White said.

He said the post office told him the envelopes are being fast-tracked through the mail system.

Regarding the returned ballots, White said the bureau is permitted to begin counting votes when the polls open on Election Day. Two shifts of six people will open and organize the ballots, which will be carried to a special room and put through a voting machine.

Both the county Democratic and Republican committees have requested and received permission to observe the ballots being counted, White said.

He said a few situations have cropped up with mail-in ballots. Some have arrived in just the mailing envelope instead of inside the secret envelope that voters are first supposed to place the ballot in. Those ballots are not discarded. Rather, a worker puts the ballot into a plain, white envelope and places it on the stack.

In another instance, a woman called to report she had lost her ballot and asked if she could come fill one out at the election bureau. White said the woman will be allowed to come to the county government center and fill out a new ballot with a photo I.D. Her lost ballot will then be canceled in the computer system, White said.

The primary election with its piles of mail-in ballots has taught the bureau what is needed.

“It will make us better prepared and more efficient for the November election,” White said.

Nicholas Spina, an assistant professor of political science at Slippery Rock University, said because it is all but a certainty that Donald Trump and Joe Biden will be the Republican and Democratic candidates, there is not much immediacy surrounding the primary.

“At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if absentee ballots were a little low,” Spina said.

He said an economic downturn hurts the incumbent, but the incumbent is also helped by a national crisis.

He said a fear factor exists regarding standing in line to vote at the polling place because of the coronavirus pandemic. Spina voted in the 2020 primary using a mail-in ballot.

“I found it to be very easy and I was very impressed with the communication,” he said of the emails he received notifying him that his vote had been received.

Spina does worry about poll workers, many of whom are elderly and vulnerable to COVID-19.

“It's a big ask for people who are above the age of 65 and most at risk,” he said.

Leslie Osche, county commissioners chairwoman, has said the county purchased hand sanitizer, disinfectant, gloves, separate pens and other safety items for those working the polls Tuesday.