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LEWISTOWN -- Pennsylvania Department of State Secretary Pedro Cortes has been meeting with county officials statewide to thank them for all their hard work during the 2016 election cycle.
On Monday, Cortes visited the Mifflin County Courthouse and spoke with Mifflin County Commissioners Kevin Kodish and Lisa Nancollas, as well as the county Director of Voter Registration Harry Clever.
Cortes said Department of State works closely with counties throughout the commonwealth to provide support.
Turnout was the highest recorded in a presidential election in Mifflin County with 78 percent of registered voters casting ballots in November.
"The counties do very well, we had very few complaints statewide," Cortes said. "That's a result of careful and thoughtful planning."
The collaboration now goes even further with the Department of Homeland Security declaring elections as "critical infrastructure," which Cortes said allows Pennsylvania to utilize resources from DHS, the FBI, Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney's Office to monitor elections.
Cortes also praised the 40,000 poll staff who worked during the 2016 election cycle.
"It's a labor of love if you think about it," Cortes said.
Clever said many poll workers in Mifflin County have been working for years, however it's a challenge at times to get new poll workers when a vacancy opens up.
Cortes was very pleased with the high voter turnout.
"In my mind the municipal elections are more important than the presidential election ... if you think about what's important to you and who touches your daily life, it's the local officials," Cortes said.
The municipal primary is May 12. The last day to register before the primary is April 17.