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Pennsylvania 2021 local ballot measures
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Ballotpedia covered four local charter amendments on ballots in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 2, 2021, and also covered three local ballot measures in Pennsylvania for voters in two cities and one county on May 18, 2021.
In 2021, Ballotpedia covered local measures that appeared on the ballot for voters within the top 100 largest cities in the U.S. and all state capitals, including those outside of the top 100 largest cities. Ballotpedia covered a selection of notable police-related and election-related measures outside of the top 100 largest cities. Ballotpedia also covered all local measures in California and all statewide ballot measures. Ballotpedia's 2021 local ballot measure coverage includes Allegheny County, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh. Click here to see the scope of Ballotpedia local ballot measure coverage by year.
Election dates
November 2
Voters in Philadelphia decided four local charter amendments on November 2, 2021. All were approved.
Philadelphia County
A "yes" vote supported amending the city's charter to call on the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Governor to pass a law decriminalizing, regulating, and taxing the sale of marijuana for recreational use by adults 21 years of age or older. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the city charter to call on the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Governor to decriminalize the use of non-medical marijuana. |
A "yes" vote supported amending the city's charter to create a Department of Fleet Services to manage all city-owned vehicles and alternative vehicle fuel programs. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the city's charter to create a Department of Fleet Services, thereby maintaining the management of city-owned vehicles under the Department of Public Property, the Procurement Department, and a board, which includes the mayor, the city's finance director, and the city's managing director. |
A "yes" vote supported amending the city's charter to change the hiring and promoting practices of the civil service system by allowing the personnel director to decide:
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A "no" vote opposed this charter amendment, thereby maintaining that a department head for the civil service system must pick between the two top-scoring applicants for a particular job and limits the applicant not picked for the job to two interviews within the same department for future job openings. |
A "yes" vote supported amending the city charter to require an annual appropriation to the city's Housing Trust Fund equaling 0.5% of the city's General Fund appropriations. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the city charter to require an annual appropriation to the city's Housing Trust Fund equaling 0.5% of the city's General Fund appropriations. |
May 18
Voters in Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, and Philadelphia decided three local ballot measures on May 18, 2021. The measures included two law enforcement initiatives to ban solitary confinement in the Allegheny County Jail and ban the use of no-knock warrants by Pittsburgh police.
Allegheny County
• Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Prohibit Solitary Confinement Initiative (May 2021): ✔
A "yes" vote supported amending the Allegheny county code, chapter 205 to add Article III concerning standards governing confinement in the Allegheny County Jail to prohibit solitary confinement except in cases of lockdowns, medical or safety emergencies, and protective separation requests. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the Allegheny county code, chapter 205 to add Article III concerning standards governing confinement in the Allegheny County Jail, thus maintaining the existing code. |
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Ban No-Knock Warrants Initiative (May 2021): ✔
A "yes" vote supported amending the Pittsburgh home rule charter to add Article 10: Powers of the Pittsburgh Police, including Section 1001 barring employees of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police from executing warrants without knocking or announcing themselves. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the Pittsburgh home rule charter to add Article 10: Powers of the Pittsburgh Police, thus maintaining the existing charter. |
Philadelphia County
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Question 1, Charter Amendment (May, 2021): ✔
A "yes" vote supported amending the Philadelphia home rule charter to provide for an expanded Board of License Inspection Review that can hear and decide cases in three-member panels. |
A "no" vote opposed amending the Philadelphia home rule charter to expand the Board of License Inspection Review, maintaining the existing three to six member limit. |
Statewide ballot measures
- See also: Pennsylvania 2021 ballot measures
May 18, 2021:
| Type | Name | Subject | Description | Result |
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| LRCA | Question 1 | Legislature | Empowers the legislature to extend or terminate a emergency declaration by resolution | 
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| LRCA | Question 2 | Executive | Addresses the governor's emergency powers, including requiring legislative approval to continue beyond 21 days |
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| LRCA | Question 3 | Constitutional | Prohibits denial or abridgement of rights on account of an individual's race or ethnicity |
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| LRSS | Question 4 | Budgets | Expands the state's loan program to volunteer fire companies to municipal fire companies and EMS service nonprofits |
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Pennsylvania
Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Pennsylvania.
| How to cast a vote in Pennsylvania | |||||
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Poll timesIn Pennsylvania, all polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[1] Registration
To register to vote in Pennsylvania, an applicant must be a citizen of the United States for at least one month before the next election, a resident of the district in which he or she is registering for at least 30 days before the next election, and at least 18 years old by the day of the next election.[2] The deadline for registering to vote is 15 days before the election.[2] Registration can be done online, in person, or by mail. Prospective voters can register in person at the county voter registration office or at a number of state agencies, including Pennsylvania Department of Transportation centers. The Pennsylvania voter registration application is available online and can be mailed to the county voter registration office.[3] On September 19, 2023, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) announced that the state had implemented automatic voter registration.[4]
Automatic registrationPennsylvania practices automatic voter registration.[5] Online registration
Pennsylvania implemented an online voter registration system in 2015.[6] Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registrationPennsylvania does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirementsProspective voters must be residents of the district in which they are registering for at least 30 days before the next election. Verification of citizenshipPennsylvania does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury. All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment.[7] Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. One state, Ohio, requires proof of citizenship only when registering to vote at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles facility. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters. Verifying your registrationThe Pennsylvania Department of State allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website. Voter ID requirementsThe federal Help America Vote Act requires that individuals in all 50 states who register to vote by mail and who have not voted previously in a federal election in their state must provide either their driver's license or a paycheck, bank statement, current utility bill, or government document showing their name and address. Individuals voting by mail must include a copy of one of those documents with their absentee/mail-in ballot.[8] These requirements do not apply if an individual submitted a copy of their identification, their driver's license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number when registering to vote. Pennsylvania does not generally require voters to present identification while voting. However, a voter who is voting at a polling place for the first time must present identification.[9] Voters can present the following forms of identification. This list was current as of October 2025. Click here to ensure you have current information.
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Additional elections
- See also: Pennsylvania elections, 2021
Philadelphia
May 18, 2021
November 2, 2021
Pittsburgh
May 18, 2021
- City elections in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (2021)
- Municipal elections in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania (2021)
- Pittsburgh Public Schools, Pennsylvania, elections (2021)
- Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Prohibit Solitary Confinement Initiative (May 2021)
November 2, 2021
See also
- Local ballot measure elections in 2021
- Local law enforcement on the ballot
- Local charter amendments on the ballot
Footnotes
- ↑ Department of State, “First Time Voters,” accessed March 21, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Department of State, “Voter Registration Application,” accessed March 21, 2023
- ↑ Department of State, “Contact Your Election Officials,” accessed March 21, 2023
- ↑ Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, "Governor Shapiro Implements Automatic Voter Registration in Pennsylvania, Joining Bipartisan Group of States That Have Taken Commonsense Step to Make Voter Registration More Streamlined and Secure," September 19, 2023
- ↑ NBC, "Pennsylvania rolls out automatic voter registration," September 19, 2023
- ↑ The Patriot-News, “Thousands take advantage of new online voter registration in Pennsylvania,” September 2, 2015
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
- ↑ Congress, "H.R.3295 - Help America Vote Act of 2002," accessed September 30, 2025
- ↑ Department of State, "First Time Voters," accessed October 8, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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