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A
forensic investigation of our election results and processes for the 2020
General Election and the 2021 Primary will go a long way to restore trust in
our system. Voting is the fundamental right of all citizens. We should
continually look for ways to improve the voting process to ensure every voice
is heard.
Today,
as Chair of the Intergovernmental Operations Committee, I issued letters to
several counties requesting information and materials needed to conduct a
forensic investigation of the 2020 General Election and the 2021 Primary.
We have
asked these counties to respond by July 31st with a plan to comply. The counties
represent different geographical regions of Pennsylvania and differing
political makeups. Some are Republican while others are Democrat, which means
that this will be a balanced investigation.
The
Intergovernmental Operations Committee is a standing committee of the
Pennsylvania State Senate with oversight and investigatory responsibilities
regarding activities relating to or conducted between two or more governments
or levels of government, including the administration of elections across the
Commonwealth. As set forth in Pennsylvania Senate Rule 14 (d), each standing
committee is empowered with the authority to inspect and investigate the books,
records, papers, documents, data, operation, and physical plant of any public
agency in this Commonwealth, including county boards of elections.
This is
necessary as millions of Pennsylvanians have serious doubts about the accuracy
of the 2020 General Election. A January poll from Muhlenberg University showed
that 40% of Pennsylvania voters are not confident that the results of the 2020
Election accurately reflected how Pennsylvanians voted. Discounting or mocking
their concerns is neither an answer nor proper in this constitutional republic.
During
debate on election reform a couple weeks ago, some of my colleagues regrettably
dismissed these poll numbers as an inconvenient truth and went on to assert
that the only reason there is distrust in our election process was because of
the “conspiracy theories and lies” from those they disagree with
politically. This sort of ad hominen attack does nothing to address the
concerns of millions of voters.
The
case for a forensic investigation of the 2020 general election is evident to
any unbiased observer.
This
was the first election in Pennsylvania with “mass” mail-in voting. In
2020, there were 2.7 million ballots cast by mail and absentee compared to
about 263,000 absentee ballots cast in 2016. Many of these ballots were counted
at offsite locations with little outside observation or oversight. Furthermore,
mail ballots without signature verification were permitted to be counted across
the Commonwealth. And, of course, all of this transpired in the midst of
Covid-19 where uncertainty and fear impacted the conduct of the election.
Additionally,
in the weeks leading up to the election, the Department of State repeatedly
altered the manner in which Pennsylvania’s election was conducted. Those who
voted in person were held to a higher standard than those who mailed in their
ballots. Signatures required for mail-in ballots were rendered meaningless as
the PA Supreme Court ruled that ballots could not be rejected based on an
analysis of the voter’s signature.
On
September 17th, the
PA Supreme Court ruled that counties had to count ballots received up to three
days after Election
Day. A week before the election, the Department of State told the U.S. Supreme
Court that ballots received after 8 p.m. on November 3rd would be
segregated. But the department changed the rules two days before the
election and directed counties to canvass those ballots upon receipt. The U.S.
Supreme Court had to step in and order the counties to segregate the ballots.
Just
hours before the polls opened on November 3, the department changed the rules
again by providing late guidance on how to help voters whose mail-in or
absentee ballots were incorrectly completed. The “guidance” resulted in
inconsistent application across the Commonwealth. Some counties contacted
voters as directed while others did not. There was no basis for that
guidance in current or case law.
It
would defy logic to assume that an election with the kinds of drastic changes
we saw in 2020 was run perfectly with zero errors or fraud.
Governor
Wolf and the Secretary of State refused to conduct any type of thorough
investigation despite the concerns of millions of our citizens in the aftermath
of the election and hundreds of affidavits alleging firsthand fraud,
irregularities, and illegal behavior witnessed at polling places.
The
closest thing to an investigation we got was a small so called “risk-limiting”
audit which consisted of a sample of only 45,000 randomly selected ballots from
the November Election. Not nearly the type of investigation that was needed to
determine any fraud, misconduct, or technical anomalies. This audit was
conducted by the Department of State and did not include public input or
outside observers.
Election
process problems were not limited to 2020. During the May Primary, multiple
poll locations ran out of their supply of ballots. This occurred even though
counties are required to print at least 10% more ballots than the highest
number of votes cast in any of the previous three municipal primary elections.
In some precincts, voting machines improperly labeled the headers of Republican
ballots as Democrat while the GOP races still appeared. In one county, a
“printing issue” caused both Democratic and Republican ballots to be rejected.
These errors occurred in a lower-turnout election, where mistakes should be
least likely to occur.
A full
forensic investigation is critically necessary for our Commonwealth for the
sake of transparency and accountability. There is nothing to fear if there is
nothing to hide. Those who have concerns about the integrity of the 2020
and 2021 election will have those concerns investigated and hopefully
addressed. Those who think that there was zero voter fraud, no irregularities,
and that the elections were conducted perfectly will have the chance to be
vindicated.
This
investigation is not about overturning the results of either election. The
goals are to restore faith in the integrity of our system, confirm the
effectiveness of existing legislation on the governance of elections, and
identify areas for legislative reform.
In
light of the governor’s recent veto of a comprehensive election reform bill (HB
1300) and the refusal of his administration to seriously address the concerns
of millions of our citizens, it is incumbent for the legislature to exercise
its oversight responsibility.
The
damage to our election process will not be undone with the passing of
time. I believe the only way to restore confidence in our Commonwealth’s
election process is to undertake a forensic investigation. By doing this, faith
in our election system will be restored.
The
people of our Commonwealth should have confidence that their vote counts. It takes
accountability and transparency to ensure that our elections are free and fair.
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