Pa. primary election live updates: Voters head to the polls; 2 ballot questions in Philly

After casting his ballot in Northwest Philadelphia early Tuesday morning, State Rep. Chris Rabb, the democratic socialist who some polls have showed is leading the field to win a seat in Congress, said he isn’t sitting comfortably heading into Election Day.

“I don’t trust polls,” said Rabb, who is one of three frontrunners in the Democratic primary to represent Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District. “The most important poll is the one at the polls, and that's the voters, that's the electorate. And I will accede to their collective resolve.”

In an interview with reporters gathered outside Grace Epiphany Episcopal Church, Rabb said he is “exhausted, but exhilarated” after 10 months of campaigning for the seat.

A new policy adopted by the Philadelphia County Board of Elections in February could pose a road block for write-in campaigns for the lowest level elected positions up for grabs in Tuesday’s primary: Committeepersons.

Aspiring committeepersons running write-in campaigns will not only have to win a plurality of votes, as in the past, they will also have to garner at least ten votes.

The change, which has been backed by the city and the two major parties in Philadelphia, has proved controversial with some Republicans, who argue write-in campaigns are necessary in divisions where there are not enough registered members of the party to get on the ballot.

It's Election Day in Philadelphia, with some high-stakes contests on the primary ballot.

Registered Democratic voters in much of the city will be weighing in on the ultra-competitive primary to fill the open seat in Philadelphia’s 3rd Congressional District after U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Philadelphia) retires at the end of his current term.

Philadelphia voters will also weigh in on two ballot questions.

This year, voters in Philadelphia will be asked to answer two ballot questions:

Home Rule Charter Question

“Shall the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to provide for the creation of the Philadelphia Retirement Savings Board to oversee a defined contribution retirement program for the benefit of eligible private-sector workers, and to authorize City Council to determine the composition, powers and duties of the board?”

Pennsylvania voters who requested mail ballots for Tuesday's primaries still have time to get them in... if they avoid the mail box.

All completed mail ballots must be returned to county elections boards or a county drop box by 8 p.m. Tuesday in order to be counted.

"If you still have your mail ballot and you have not returned it yet, do not put it in the mail," Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt said in a news conference Monday. "Take it to a Board of Elections office in your county or Board of Elections drop box and return it in person."

Voters who experience any former of intimidation while voting Tuesday are urged to call a hotline set up by the Pennsylvania Department of State. The number is 1-877-VOTES-PA (1-877-868-3772).

"Voters have rights protected by federal and state laws, and voter intimidation and coercion are illegal," Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt said during a news conference Monday.

Schmidt said voters can also report any acts of intimidation to the judge of elections at their polling place, their county elections office, or their local district attorney's office.

This might not be the hottest primary election in Pennsylvania’s history, but it may well be the hottest primary day on record from Erie International Airport to PHL.

Philadelphia’s forecast high of 97 might make a run at being the warmest May day, period, in the 150-plus records that the government has been keeping score.

Pittsburgh is heading for the low 90s, according to the National Weather Service, which would flirt with setting a new mark, and Altoona is likely to record a new high, around 90 degrees..