By Helen Ehrlich, News Editor
Since the 2020 election and the confusion that followed after the polls closed, Republicans around the country have launched concerted efforts to question the validity of the results. Following disproved claims from former President Trump that he won in Pennsylvania, Republicans in PA have also honed in on election integrity. In September 2021, Pennsylvania’s Senate Republicans commenced a “forensic probe” into the 2020 presidential election, which the Senate approved in August of 2021.
Pennsylvania has already conducted two routine audits. A 1980 Pennsylvania law requires that in each election, 2% of all ballots be audited. All counties submitted a sample of their votes. Pennsylvania also did a risk-limiting audit, with 63 of 67 counties opting to participate. Both of these audits concluded that nothing was abnormal and that Biden won the state as a whole.
Pennsylvania was crucial for Biden. He was personally and politically connected to the commonwealth, as he was born in Scranton and opted to keep his campaign headquarters in Philadelphia. PA was a key state for him to win back after it went red in 2016. Both Biden and Trump made weekly stops across Pennsylvania during the month leading up to the election. Their campaigns were keenly clearly aware of the 20 electoral votes that PA offered. President Biden’s win in Pennsylvania secured the White House for him.
In the year following the win, Republicans across the country have weaponized the issue of voting integrity. Trump propagated a lie about the election being stolen, which has become a hot button issue. Voter suppression has long been a Republican tactic, but in recent years it has been justified through fear mongering that people are voting illegally. In 2020, those who believe the unsubstantiated claim that the election was stolen, moved to spread a disproved theory that China tampered with the machines and votes. Questioning the election has since become a strategy for far-right candidates in numerous states. This has even been playing out in states like Utah and Wisconsin, which didn’t have any voting confusion, as well as the closely observed gubernatorial race in Virginia. Trump even pushed an election audit bill in Texas, which later died.
This PA aduit shortly follows the results of Arizona’s Republican investigation into the election. Both states were some of the most closely watched during the nearly five days of vote counting for the 2020 presidential election. Arizona has conducted two audits in Maricopa County, their largest county (which includes Phoenix). Their Republican Party hired four outside firms to conduct the investigation, including Wake Technology Services, which counted ballots in Pennsylvania’s election. Neither audits found any evidence of fraud or tampering. They maintained that Biden won by 10,500 votes in Arizona.
In 2020, PA Republicans formed the Special Committee on Election Integrity and Reform. They also tried to pass House Bill 1300, which was vetoed by Governor Wolf (D) for being too restrictive regarding voting rights.
In July 2021, three PA counties received demands to turn over election materials: Philadelphia, Tioga and York. Tioga County officials voted to not comply with the request. If the machines are turned over, they will be decertified and the counties will be responsible for replacing them, per an order from the Secretary of State. Fulton County is currently suing to have their voting machines reinstated after they complied with local Republican audit demands in the winter of 2020. Tioga went to Trump by 74.5% and the lawmakers who voted against turning over the materials are all Republicans.
The drama then continued internally for Republicans. Senator Doug Mastriano launched an investigation in August 2021 and was shortly thereafter stripped of his role. Mastriano has been eyed as a potential gubernatorial candidate for 2022 and has been accused of using the position to improve political allyship and leverage.
The Senate filed 17 subpoenas for personal information. They’re looking for information regarding which voters registered, how people voted and different regulations regarding those working in the poles. These subpoenas are currently being challenged by a lawsuit against the Senate Pro Tempore Jake Corman, Senator Cris Dush (R) and the Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee. The petitioners claim the subpoenas violate the privacy of Pennsylvanians. Commonwealth Court President Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt approved three government groups joining the suit. There were multiple challenges to the subpoenas, but the suit is now consolidated. Attorney General Josh Shaprio also filed a suit with the Department of State and Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth Veronica Degraffenreid. On October 22, 2021 Pennsylvania Senate Republicans filed in the Commonwealth Court to defend their subpoena, in the face of challenges from Democrats.
PA House Speaker Bryan Cutler (R) set forth plans for a new “Bureau of Election Audits” during a November General Assembly’s State Government Committee hearing. This Bureau would require “result confirming” audits be conducted during each election. They would also audit the state’s election processes and systems from the last five years. It would be under the Office of the Auditor General, which is currently held by Republican Timothy DeFoor. The auditor general would appoint an independent auditor when their position is on the ballot. Republicans are claiming that having a standard system of auditing is more secure than having each county interpret the state’s auditing restrictions, which is the current practice. Democrats have expressed concerns with having politicians run the audits and the price tag, after there were no issues found in the previous election. Similar provisions were included in the 2021 state budget proposal, which estimated the cost at $3.1 million (that specific appropriation was vetoed by governor Wolf).
The current emphasis on election audits signals that the Pennsylvania GOP is opting to follow the national model of Republicans honing in on election integrity. It also feeds into the pattern of Trump endorsing candidates who are parroting and supporting his claims of the 2020 election being stolen. Democrats, in turn, have expressed concerns on a national level that this may encourage the violence similar to January 6’s insurrection or the collapse of democratic systems. A Republican running for the Senate in Nevada has already refused to commit to certifying 2024 election results, confirming some analysts’ beliefs regarding politicians legally being able to decertify legitimate elections. Efforts to drum up anxieties around election integrity could create disarray during Pennsylvania’s 2022 election season.
