Bitterness on display as probe into state process gets started
‘Need for truth’ and ‘discontent’ cited as lawmakers launch review
HARRISBURG — The bitter divide in perceptions of Pennsylvania’s 2020 election was glaringly obvious Thursday as state lawmakers began an in-depth review of the election process.
Democratic Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar led off testimony at a legislative hearing by telling the Republican-led House State Government Committee “it is time for truth” and that an “assault on facts” must end.
But Republican state Rep. Dawn Keefer of York County told Boockvar that if voters who saw confusion in election management “don’t trust the process, they are not going to trust the results” and that lack of uniformity in handling votes “sows the seeds of discontent.”
It was the first of 14 hearings on the election process. Republican Committee Chairman Rep.
Seth Grove of York County said they are intended to come up with changes to make sure voters “and not the process” decide who wins elections.
Boockvar questioned the need for them. She suggested that an advisory board including election officials from around the state would be a better forum.
Grove responded, “It it is our job to actually set the law and provide oversight on everything within our jurisdiction, and we will continue to proceed with that.”
The Democratic chairwoman of the committee, Rep. Margo Davidson of Delaware County, said the hearings would affirm “for the hundredth time” the state had a fair, accurate election.
Davidson added, “I hope we will not go backward.”
The conduct of the election in Pennsylvania was a source of friction before and after Nov. 3 and on Election Day itself, when Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman of Centre County and Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati of Jefferson County called for Boockvar to resign immediately.
The Republican leaders said Boockvar, a Democrat, had “fundamentally altered” the conduct of the election by giving “constantly changing” guidance to counties.
At the time, Boockvar denied the accusations and declined to resign. Gov. Tom Wolf called the Republicans’ accusations against Boockvar “a partisan attack on Pennsylvania’s elections and our votes.”
The Thursday hearing was focused on guidance that Boockvar issued to counties in the run-up to the election and afterward.
Questions hit on topics that became sore spots and even fodder for lawsuits, such as signature matching, so-called “naked ballots” and handling of late-arriving mail ballots.
Republican state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie of Lehigh County asked Boockvar about guidance her office issued on naked ballots — those mailed to elections officials without required security envelopes.
Mackenzie said a court ruling seemed to support the view that Pennsylvania law was clear on the handling of such ballots. He asked, “How did you issue guidance that was so far afield from what the court ruled?”
Boockvar said her team believed the law wasn’t clear.
She said other states were allowing the ballots to be counted, so Pennsylvania went in that direction. After a court ruling that disallowed it, new guidance was issued to be in compliance.
“We believe there is a clear constitutional preference for enfranchisement of voters,” Boockvar said.
After the hearing, Grove issued a statement that said the state’s election process has never been questioned the way it has been in the past few months, and there is a need to restore voter confidence.