Chester, Pennsylvania Public Records

The City of Chester Police Department is responsible for maintaining public safety and law enforcement records within the city. Residents and the general public can obtain information about crime statistics, incident reports, and other law enforcement-related data by visiting the department's website at https://www.chestercity.com/departments/department-of-public-affairs/chester-police-department/.

Chester voters are served by the Delaware County Bureau of Elections, located at Government Center Building, 201 West Front Street, Media, PA 19063 (phone: 610-891-4659, website: https://www.delcopa.gov/vote). This office handles all aspects of voter registration, election administration, and voting records for Chester residents. Pennsylvania residents can register to vote online at https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/pages/VoterRegistrationApplication.aspx, with registration deadlines typically 15 days before any election. First-time voters must provide a driver's license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. Chester holds municipal elections for mayor, city council members, and other city offices. The mayor serves a four-year term, as do city council members. Chester's next mayoral election will be held in the November 2025 municipal election cycle, with Democratic and Republican primaries held in May 2025. City council seats are also on the ballot in municipal election years. Pennsylvania holds municipal elections in odd-numbered years, separate from federal and state elections. Chester residents can find their assigned polling place using the Pennsylvania Department of State's polling place lookup tool at https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/pages/pollingplaceinfo.aspx by entering their address. Under Pennsylvania law, voter registration lists are public records available for purchase from the county elections office for legitimate purposes, though individual voter history is protected. Campaign finance reports for local and state candidates are filed with the Pennsylvania Department of State and searchable at https://www.campaignfinanceonline.pa.gov. Precinct-level election results are published by the Delaware County Bureau of Elections after certification. In the November 2024 presidential election, Delaware County showed strong turnout with approximately 65-70% of registered voters participating, reflecting the county's engagement in federal races. On November 3, 2026, Chester and Delaware County voters will decide races including Pennsylvania's gubernatorial election (Governor Tom Wolf's successor Josh Shapiro is up for re-election in 2026), one U.S. Senate seat (if the Class III seat is up in 2026), all Pennsylvania House of Representatives seats (every two years), half of the Pennsylvania State Senate seats (four-year staggered terms), county offices including County Council seats, district attorney, sheriff, and other constitutional offices if scheduled, and various judicial positions including Court of Common Pleas judges. Pennsylvania offers mail-in voting with no excuse required since Act 77 of 2019. Chester residents can request a mail-in or absentee ballot online through https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/OnlineAbsenteeApplication, with applications due by 5 p.m. the Tuesday before Election Day. Completed ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day, and voters can track their ballot status online.