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Reps. touring PA correctional facilities say Centre County is a good model for voting access

The front facade of the Centre County Correctional Facility
James Engel
The Centre County Correctional Facility.

Members of Pennsylvania's Legislative Black Caucus say the Centre County Correctional Facility is a good model for voting access.

Pennsylvania State Representatives Aerion Abney and Rick Krajewski visited the facility on Wednesday as part of a state tour to promote correctional facility voting access.

Representative Abney said Centre County was on their radar from the start.

“There are only a handful of county jails that actually have, one, a written policy and, two, actual procedures on how to implement it, and Centre County was one of them,” Abney said.

Zoom screenshots from the Centre County Correctional Facility voting access meeting
Zoom screenshot
Centre County Commissioner Amber Concepcion (left), Warden Glenn Irwin (third from left), Rep. Rick Krajewski (second from right) and Rep. Aerion Abney (far right) talked about voting access at the Centre County Correctional Facility and statewide at a meeting on Aug. 28, 2024.

Centre County Correctional Facility Warden Glenn Irwin said their voting procedures have evolved. Before 2018, Centre County Correctional Facilities didn’t offer voting access. Now, they have staff dedicated to educating voters and getting them their ballots.

"We now have an educational plan in place," Irwin said. "We have a trifold voting guide that is made available to all incarcerated individuals explaining who's eligible to vote and how you register to vote."

The tour will continue until the end of October.