EASTON, Pa.- More ballot drop-boxes and pop-up voter service events are likely coming to Northampton County for the 2026 general election.

The county’s election commission discussed the changes during a heavily attended meeting that stretched beyond three hours Tuesday afternoon into the evening.

More than half of the meeting was taken up by the public comment portion, in which nearly three dozen people took a turn at the podium.

Most of the speakers railed against what they see as shortcomings in how the county carries out its elections. Some revisited issues that surfaced during the May primary, including the wrong electronic file being downloaded to pollbooks.

On the subject of drop-boxes, some members of the public asked for more of them, while others advocated for getting rid of them completely, with one resident calling them “glorified garbage cans.” 

During his remarks, Elections Registrar Chris Commini asked for authorization to add two to three new drop-boxes for the November election; Northampton County currently has seven. The new boxes would be paid for with grant money and not county funds, he said.

The county has not yet identified exact locations for the new boxes, but Commini said finding a spot in the Lower Saucon Township area would be a priority, as an in-person polling place there had to be moved outside of the township to Bethlehem. 

Election Commission Chair Sharon Gavin-Levy expressed support for the proposal.

“I think it’s important that we make voting accessible, especially when we know we have a sizable population who may not be able to get out on election day,” she said.

“So this certainly would make it accessible to people, to elderly people and so forth who may not be able to get out or people who commute or work 10- and 12-hour shifts,” Gavin-Levy added.

Election Commission Vice Chair Scott Hough proposed an amendment to move an existing drop-box from southside Bethlehem to the Lower Saucon / Hellertown area, rather than adding additional boxes.

“We’re asking people in the county now, with two months to go, to do extra work to try to get all this stuff done. It’s always rush, rush, rush, and then all of a sudden there’s going to be a mistake,” he said.

His alternate proposal failed, and the commission voted 3-2 to authorize three additional ballot drop-boxes for Northampton County.

Pop-ups

The one-day, pop-up events are meant to provide “an additional point of access for voters,” Marc Aurand, the county’s director of administration, told the commission. They provide an opportunity for residents to register to vote, apply for a mail-in or absentee ballot, receive and complete a ballot on-demand, and return their ballot on-site or via the existing drop-boxes.

Four pop-ups were held in Northampton County ahead of the May primary election.

Aurand said the county has four pop-ups scheduled before the November election as well:

October 6- Upper Mount Bethel Township Building; 4 p.m. – 7 p.m.

October 14- Pen Argyl Borough Hall; 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

October 15- Lafayette College in Easton; time TBD

Lower Saucon Township; exact date and location TBD

Aurand told the commission the county was seeking out two additional opportunities for the pop-up events.

“We may or may not find two additional locations that are appropriate, but we’re just asking for the opportunity to explore that further,” he said.

But his request was really just a formality, as the commission had previously authorized up to six of the pop-ups. Aurand said he wanted to make sure the commission was being kept in the loop.

“We are trying to bring you up to speed and make sure you understand what we’re doing,” he said.

Commission member Shawn Welch expressed concern that the county’s election division was being stretched too thin to accommodate supplemental duties, like hosting the pop-ups.

“You have yet to run a clean election day,” he said to Aurand.

“I’ve been paying attention to this since like 2018 and I haven’t seen a clean election day yet,” he added.

Commini said neither the additional ballot drop-boxes nor the pop-ups will create much extra work for his staff. 

On the subject of the boxes, “My office has nothing to do with picking up ballots,” Commini said.

“All the ballots are picked up by the (sheriff’s) deputies. All they do is deliver them to our office, and we count them,” he remarked.

The upcoming general election is Tuesday, November 3.