PA Election Law

[Mc Mike]

Last edited Mon Oct 24, 2016, 10:49 PM - Edit history (1)

PA P.L. (Pamphlet Law) 1333, Act No. 320 C.L. 25 6/3/1937 PA Election Code

This is my sum up of what is pertinent in the P.L., anyone can feel free to read it, and add any other Sections they feel are relevant in comments; the source is this link from the PA state General Assembly:
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/US/PDF/1937/0/0320..PDF


Article III
Sec 310 (a) 3 or less (poll) watchers, county residents or lawyers, allowed to represent party, political body or body of citizens. (p. 17, State Law PDF link)

Article IV
Sec 406 Election officers duly sworn. (p. 20, PDF)

Sec 407 To prevent fraud, deceit, and abuse. (p. 20)

Sec 408 No officer is allowed to vexatiously delay or refuse to permit any person to vote, who is entitled to vote. (p. 20)

Sec 417 (a) Candidate can appoint 2 watchers, party / political body that nominated the candidate can appoint 3. (b) Watchers must be qualified registered electors of the county. Only one watcher allowed to be present at any one time, until the register and check list are locked and sealed. (one per party, is my read.) While voters are not present, watcher can request to inspect the voting check list and one of the 2 numbered voter lists. (pp. 24 - 25)

Article VIII
Sec 801 (a) A party or political body with a candidate that has support at 2% or more in 10 counties is declared to be a political party within the state. (d) Party can't advocate seizure or overthrowing the Commonwealth of PA or U.S. Government, through use of force, violence, military measures, or threats of one or more of the foregoing. (pp. 40-41, PDF link)

Article XVIII
Sec 1808 Any person who refuses to permit election officers to act, or by violence or intimidation threatens or drives away, or who in any manner, prevents them from performing their duties and rights, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, pay a fine of up to $1,000 or imprisoned for one month to two years, or both. (pp. 205-6, state law PDF link)

Sec 1811 Any peace officer, sheriff, deputy, constable, police officer who fails to render election officers assistance requested in maintenance of peace and making of arrests, or hinders or delays elections personnel in their duty shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $500, or imprisoned from 3 months to 2 years, or both. (p. 207)

Sec 1820 No police officers in commission, uniformed or in civilian's clothes, is allowed within 100' of polling place, unless voting, serving a warrant, or called upon to preserve the peace. Violation results in fine up to $500, or imprisonment up to 1 year, or both. (p. 209)

Sec 1821 Police officers, sheriffs, mayor, burgess, must keep door to polls unobstructed, cannot neglect or refuse to maintain order and quell disturbances at the poll, when called on to do so by any election officer, or any 3 qualified electors of the election district. If they fail to act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor in office, fine of up to $1000, or imprisonment of up to 1 year, or both. (pp. 209-10)

Sec 1825 Any Judge, inspector, clerk of elections or machine clerk who in any mannner prevents a free and fair election shall be guilty of a third degree felony, with a fine of up to $15,000 or imprisonment of up to 7 years, or both. (pp. 210 - 11)

Sec 1827 Interference with Elections; Conspiracy -- Any person who attempts to prevent elections officers from their duties, threatens, interrupts or improperly interferes with elections officers' execution of their duties, or blocks the door to any polling place, intimidates, threatens, influences unduly, or overawes any elector, or prevents elector from voting, or conspires with others to commit these offenses, shall be guilty of a third degree felony, with a fine of up to $15,000, or imprisonment of up to 7 years, or both. (pp. 211 - 212)

Sec 1828 Persons Interfering in Other Districts -- Any person who on election day visits any polling place at which he is not entitled to vote and not entitled to be present under any provision of this act, and uses intimidation or violence for the purpose of preventing elections officers from performing their duty or preventing a qualified elector from exercising their right to vote, shall be guilty of a third degree felony, up to $15 k, or 7 years imprisonment, or both. (p. 212)

Sec 1829 Assault and battery on an elector at or near the polling place during the election is a first degree misdemeanor, up to $10 k, or 5 years, or both. (p. 212)

Sec 1849 Misdemeanor to intentionally interfere with, hinder or delay any other person in the performance of any act or duty authorized or imposed by this act. $500 fine, imprisonment up to 1 year, or both. (p. 217)

Sec 1852 Any person convicted of willful violation of any provision of this act shall be disenfranchised for 4 years from the date of conviction, in addition to the penalties herein described. (p. 217)

Sec 1854 The State Attorney General and the District Attorney of the county where the violation occurred have prosecutorial jurisdiction over violations committed under this act. (p. 218)

[blue neen]

1. Whoa. Spot on.

Excellent, pertinent information.

[Mc Mike]

2. There's a couple hundred pages in the link, bn.

I just looked for what seems like remedies for us, at the polls, for the purposes of combatting Stone/Roman/drumpfenfuhrer's goons.

I can't say I got all the pertinent stuff, or that I interpret all correctly, because I'm no lawyer. The phrasing and paraphrasing is as close as I could get without a huge o.p., and the page numbers to the linked pdf are accurate, and searchable.

[DeminPennswoods]

3. VotesPA is the Dept of State's info website

VotesPA.com has good, plain language information about voting in the Commonwealth. The voter guide .pdf pamplet specifically addresses who is/isn't allowed inside the poll and also addresses voter intimidation (It's illegal and punishable by fine and/or jail).

[Mc Mike]

4. 2 More Important Laws:

The Nation magazine on tRump's poll 'watcher' threats:
https://www.thenation.com/article/donald-trump-is-encouraging-intimidation-and-racial-profiling-at-the-polls/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=New%20Campaign&utm_term=daily

There are 2 good links in the article, one is about the '82 Consent Decree. It forbids any republican party officials, organizations, or agents or servants of the same, from engaging in any kind of ballot security or ballot integrity efforts, without prior court consent, especially in any areas where racial or ethnic makeup could be considered a reason for the activities. That's nationwide, it's a Federal Consent Decree.

The '82 Consent Decree:
http://electionlawblog.org/?p=85289

The current DNC court case charging that the RNC is violating the Consent Decree already, in this election, is important. Because dRumpf and the RNC have merged personnel, shared facilities and resources, and made a ton of statements about how they're working together on "ballot security" efforts. The repugs and dRumpf campaign are trying to pretend that their zealous partisans, who are long-time connected to the RNC and repug party, are in no way connected to the RNC, aren't constantly using their resources and facilities, dRumpf people don't talk to them, they don't talk to drumpf people, while RNC head Priebus is on the stump and making press statements about how the RNC is 100% behind dRumpf, he's their candidate, they're committed to him.



The other law link in the Nation article is PA specific, because dRump said that he was going to send the police in to watch the polling places in those (dog whistle) areas where people are voting too many times. He wants to send racist rightwing trump supporting cops to watch Black and Hispanic polls.

PA Title 25, Sec 3047 specifically states that the uniformed or plainclothes police aren't allowed within 100' of a polling place, unless voting, or called to preserve the peace. In no event are they to prevent any elector from voting or influence or overawe them or restrain their freedom of choice. PA election law against polling place 'policing':
https://govt.westlaw.com/pac/Document/NB1EA7150D0A011DEA63ECFA39685C638?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=(sc.Default)

(This Title 25, Sec 3047, Elections link worked as of 10/10, and currently is broken, doesn't let me access the info on westlaw. But the summation of the law is in the Nation article link.)


Elections are run by the counties here, but subject to PA state law. Nobody who is not from the county is allowed to come "monitor" inside polls in the county. (The repugs are currently trying to change PA state law to let their red county people come to blue urban county polls.)

Any Poll Monitor must stand outside, at least 10' away, can't block the door, any Poll Watcher must represent a party or candidate, have a Watcher's certificate issued by the county, must be a county resident, can't talk to the voter / elector, can be by the sign in table but not by the machines, can't engage in political campaigning in the precinct, can't wear candidate or party pins or clothing, can ask to see voting check list and one of the 2 numbered voter lists, occasionally.

If they vexatiously delay electors with a bunch of frivolous pre-emptive challenges, any 3 qualified electors (registered voters) from the polling place can call the authorities and demand that they be removed. The elections officials can and should do the same, but if they don't, voters who are getting stuck in a long line that is backing up can act. The election officials are legally bound to act, any and all law enforcement people are required to act, to remove the vexatious delay-causing dRumpf repug official.

Any Monitor who tries to act like a Watcher invites having the police or magistrate's constable called on them. Any Watcher needs papers proving they're from the county, proving they're tied in to the republican party or candidate and it's certified by the county, or must prove they have a prior court consent, with court documents. Those papers can and should be demanded, "papers, please, trumphler." Get their i.d., address, proof they're an elector in the county, their poll watcher certificate number, the name of the judge on their court papers proving prior consent. Any watcher who keeps acting up and is causing problems with the electors' rights to cast ballots should have the constables and police called on them. Any of them causing problems will result in charges levied against the state and federal repug party and dRumpf campaign officials, in addition to any charges against the dRumpf backing trouble maker themself.