The county Bureau of Elections, county commissioners office and U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly’s Butler office have been receiving calls from voters who are confused about the candidates on their ballots for the Nov. 8 elections.

Adam Price, poll worker and precinct coordinator at the Butler County Bureau of Elections, said people who have received their mail-in ballots or who have viewed the online ballots for the upcoming election may notice their current candidate for the 16th congressional district does not appear.

Price explains that all voting district lines across the state are redrawn every 10 years when the U.S. Census results are released.

While some voters on the eastern side of Butler County now may be represented by Glenn G.T. Thompson — because the 16th U.S. House district has been redrawn — they will be voting for either incumbent Rep. Mike Kelly or Democratic contender Dan Pastore.

Likewise, voters in the southwestern corner of the county who are represented by Conor Lamb, R-17 will be represented by the winner of the Kelly/Pastore race starting in 2023. That’s because all of Butler County will be inside the 16th House district.

“As long as the ballot lists the right precinct on the top, they’re all good,” Price said of voter concerns.

On Thursday, Matt Knoedler, press secretary for Kelly, said Pennsylvania now has 18 U.S. House seats, but will have 17 in 2023. He reiterated that lines are redrawn each decade based on the census.

The new district map was approved by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Feb. 23 and goes into effect in January as the winners of the November election are sworn in. The new 16th congressional district encompasses all of Butler, Crawford, Erie, Lawrence and Mercer counties and part of Venango County.

“It’s all based on population changes,” Knoedler said. “Some states gain or lose population. It’s all about making it more balanced and equal.”

He said he was notified that county officials are receiving calls from voters concerned that either Thompson or Lamb do not appear on their ballot for the Nov. 8 election.

Knoedler said some people are looking at the current 16th U.S. House district map and getting confused.

”Folks are looking at that and saying ‘I live in East Butler. Why is Mike Kelly on my ballot and not G.T. Thompson?’” he said of maps currently posted on some websites.

Knoedler said, if elected, it has not yet been determined if Kelly will open another regional office once the new map takes effect.

Kelly currently represents about 705,000 constituents, compared to 750,000 once the new district takes effect.

“I think for Mike, it’s really just about serving as many people as best we can,” Knoedler said.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia all lost one congressional seat following the 2020 census. Texas gained two seats and Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina and Oregon each gained one seat.

All other districts, both U.S. and state, were redrawn as well.

While Butler County currently has seven state House representatives, that number will be reduced to four in 2023 due to district lines being redrawn.

Voters in the new state House 12th district may notice this on their ballots.

Stephenie Scialabba, a Republican, and Robert Vigue, Democrat, face off in the district that includes Cranberry, Jackson and Adams townships and Callery, Evans City, Harmony, Mars, Seven Fields, Valencia and Zelienople boroughs.

The two candidates are vying to take the seat previously held by Republican state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, who announced his retirement earlier this year.

Municipalities added to the district include Jackson Township, as well as Evans City, Harmony and Zelienople boroughs. Municipalities moving to other restructured districts include Clinton, Forward, Middlesex and Penn townships.

The new 8th, 17th and 11th district races are uncontested.

Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-10th, a Lawrence County resident who currently holds the 10th district seat, is running uncontested for the new 8th district.

The new 8th district consists of Butler County's Brady, Center, Clay, Connoquenessing, Forward, Franklin, Lancaster, Middlesex, Muddy Creek, Penn and Worth townships; and Connoquenessing, Portersville, Prospect, West Liberty and West Sunbury boroughs.

Rep. Tim Bonner, R-8th, is running uncontested for the new 17th district.

The largest portion of District 17 comes from municipalities of the former 64th district, a seat currently held by Rep. R. Lee James. In addition to Mercer County municipalities, the district consists of Butler County's Allegheny, Cherry, Concord, Fairview, Marion, Mercer, Parker, Slippery Rock, Venango and Washington townships, as well as Bruin, Cherry Valley, Eau Claire, Fairview, Harrisville, Karns City, Petrolia and Slippery Rock boroughs.

Rep. Marci Mustello, R-11th, is running uncontested. He district is unchanged numerically, but affected geographically.

The new 11th district remains the most central and embedded in the county, as its entire boundary is within the county’s border. The revised district consists of Butler City; the townships of Buffalo, Butler, Clearfield, Clinton, Donegal, Jefferson, Oakland, Summit and Winfield; and the boroughs of Chicora, East Butler and Saxonburg.

None of the state Senate seats representing Butler County are up for election, but Butler County, again, will see some changes in regards to these seats.

Senators Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, and Elder Vogel, R-47th, will share Butler County, but the 41st district, a seat held by Republican Joe Pittman, no longer contains any part of Butler County.

The Butler County municipalities previously covered by Pittman will be split between Hutchinson’s and Vogel’s districts. Terms for both senators end in 2024.

Hutchinson’s 21st district will consist of Butler City, Allegheny, Brady, Buffalo, Butler, Center, Cherry, Clay, Clearfield, Clinton, Concord, Connoquenessing, Donegal, Fairview, Franklin, Jefferson, Marion, Mercer, Muddycreek, Oakland, Parker, Penn, Slippery Rock, Summit, Venango, Washington, Winfield and Worth townships; and Bruin, Cherry Valley, Chicora, Connoquenessing, East Butler, Eau Claire, Fairview, Harrisville, Karns City, Petrolia, Portersville, Prospect, Saxonburg, Slippery Rock, West Liberty and West Sunbury boroughs.

The district also includes all of Clarion, Forest, Venango and Warren counties, as well as part of Erie County.

Vogel’s 41st district includes parts of Butler, Beaver and Lawrence counties.

Butler County municipalities included are Adams, Cranberry, Forward, Jackson, Lancaster and Middlesex townships, as well as Callery, Evans City, Harmony, Mars, Seven Fields, Valencia and Zelienople boroughs.

All voters can look up their current representatives’ websites to see if they remain in the same state and U.S. districts.