The Trump campaign can't have poll watchers at Philly satellite election offices, judge says

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer

A Philadelphia judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s campaign does not have the right for poll watchers to observe activities inside the city’s new satellite election offices. The campaign sued the city last week, arguing its representatives should be permitted inside the offices, where voters can request, complete, and submit mail ballots. Common Pleas Judge Gary S. Glazer issued a ruling Friday denying the petition.

“The satellite offices where these activities, and only these activities, occur are true ‘offices of the Board of Elections’ and are not polling places, nor public sessions of the Board of Elections, at which watchers have a right to be present under the election code,” Glazer wrote in his 14-page opinion. The lawsuit had echoed false claims Trump himself made during last month’s presidential debate, when he said “bad things happen in Philadelphia." Trump has baselessly attacked mail voting as susceptible to widespread fraud and cast doubt on the integrity of the election. His campaign argued it had a right to observe the Philadelphia offices because they were marketed as early voting locations.

But Glazer’s ruling does not end the legal battle over the satellite offices. The Trump campaign immediately appealed the decision, said spokesperson Samantha Zager. “What are they trying to hide?” Zager said. “Every campaign has a right to have watchers observe the voting process and make sure all rules are being followed, and President Trump is boldly standing up for that right.” Glazer ruled that state law does not provide for poll watchers inside election offices, and said it would be improper for him to decide to permit it.

“For this court to read into the Election Code the right of watchers to be present in Board of Elections' offices, which the Legislature did not expressly provide, would be the worst sort of judicial activism,” Glazer wrote. “This court will not engage in such improper conduct.” A lawyer for the city argued during a hearing this week that the offices are not official voting locations like polling places, and noted that campaigns have a right to observe the counting of mail ballots after they are opened, beginning on Election Day.



Read more: https://www.inquirer.com/politics/election/trump-campaign-philadelphia-lawsuit-ruling-20201009.html

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These "satellite offices" are NOT "polling places". WE HAVE NO "EARLY IN-PERSON VOTING IN PA". These are just consolidated locations to drop off "regular" absentee or "no-excuse" absentee ballots (both "mail-in" ), to register to vote, to request an absentee ballot, and if desired, to complete that absentee ballot and drop off.

None of these ballots are going to be opened or tallied UNTIL election day, when people will also be doing "in-person" voting at a machine.

[TreasonousBastard]

1. This should be a no-brainer. Poll watchers have strictly defined functions, and none of those...

allow them to interfere with voters or election officials.

[BumRushDaShow]

2. I heard the story on the radio before I found the article

and our elections officials "welcomed" them to apply to be a watcher ON ELECTION DAY.

And earlier, the PA State Supreme Court ruled that any "poll watcher" MUST be a voter IN THAT COUNTY. LOONEY TOONS out-of-state or out-of-county "militia thugs" ARE BANNED.