West Chester-area residents who are not registered to vote must act before Monday, Oct. 19. That is the last day to register or update a name, address or party affiliation before the Nov. 3 general election.

Online applications at vote.pa.gov must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Oct. 19. Paper applications delivered by mail or in person must reach a county election office before close of business that day, according to myChesco, which first reported the state's reminder.

Chester County Voter Services Director Michele DiCaprio noted both deadlines at the county Board of Elections meeting Oct. 2 in West Chester. DiCaprio said the voter registration deadline is Oct. 19 and the mail-ballot application deadline is Oct. 27, as reported by the Daily Local News.

Chester County has 391,244 registered voters, DiCaprio said at the same meeting. The county had received 48,486 mail-ballot requests as of Oct. 2.

Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt urged residents to register before the deadline at an Oct. 7 press conference. Schmidt also warned that phishing scams are asking voters to enter personal information under the guise of checking registration status. He said voters should use only vote.pa.gov, which is available in English, Spanish and Chinese, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.

The Nov. 3 ballot includes races for governor, lieutenant governor, U.S. House, state Senate seats in even-numbered districts and all 203 state House seats.

How to register

Residents can register online at vote.pa.gov, in person at the Chester County Voter Services office at 313 W. Market St. in West Chester, or by mailing a paper application to that office. The phone number is 610-344-6000.

Paper forms are also available at county assistance offices, Armed Forces recruitment centers and other government locations.

To qualify, a person must be a U.S. citizen for at least one month before Election Day and a resident of their election district for at least 30 days. Voters must be at least 18 years old by Nov. 3.

Other key dates

Chester County's Election Assistance Office at the Government Services Center, 601 Westtown Rd. in West Goshen Township, is open Oct. 12 through Nov. 2 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The office stays open until 5 p.m. on Oct. 27. A 24-hour ballot drop box is available there starting Oct. 12. The county has 13 drop boxes countywide, according to county election records.

The mail-ballot application deadline is 5 p.m. Oct. 27. Completed mail ballots must reach county election offices by 8 p.m. Nov. 3. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State. Anyone in line by 8 p.m. can vote.

The Chester County Board of Elections meets next at 9 a.m. Oct. 30 at 313 W. Market St., sixth floor, West Chester.