State Rep. Brad Roae wants to make it easier for Pennsylvania residents to follow election results.

Roae, R-Meadville, has introduced a co-sponsorship memorandum for legislation he is drafting that would require the Pennsylvania Department of State to restore information on Election Night that tells voters how many voting precincts have reported their data. Those watching for Pennsylvania’s election returns will want to know how much of the vote has come in and from where – yet that information was removed from the state Department of State website about five years ago, according to Roae, and it wasn’t included on the statewide election returns website for this year’s primary elections. That’s too bad, because the number of precincts reporting is an important piece of information for interested citizens to have at their disposal – and the state should provide it.

This is a bill that shouldn’t be necessary in the first place. Roae’s could be dealt with quickly enough with a simple administrative directive at the state Department of State. Gov. Josh Shapiro doesn’t need legislative approval to make this administrative change. All anyone in the governor’s office or State Department needs to do is say the word and the information could be added to the website.

While we agree with Roae that the number of precincts reporting should be on the State Department’s election results website, the Republican lawmaker should spread the word to his colleagues that if we want to have results faster to be posted to the State Department website, absentee and mail-in ballots should be allowed to be opened and counted before Election Day.

Then, the numbers we’re seeing on Election Night will really mean something.