President of the Pennsylvania Senate Jake Corman (R-Centre) reacted to a video recording of a man possibly stuffing a drop box with ballots by urging Gov. Tom Wolf and his fellow lawmakers to “fill the gaps in the system and restore faith in our elections.”
The video captures the man appearing to stuff a Lackawanna County drop box in Scranton the day before the May 18 primary elections, according to a report by The Morning Call.
State law says individual voters may mail or return only their ballots to a county board of elections in person, the paper reported.
“The only exceptions are if you are a voter with a disability and have designated someone, in writing, to deliver your ballot, or if you need an emergency absentee ballot,” Ellen Lyon, a spokeswoman for the state Department of State, told the paper.
Corman said in an Oct. 12 statement that the “video in this case perfectly illustrates the concerns legislators have raised for more than a year about the use of unsecured ballot drop boxes. If someone did this on camera in broad daylight, there is no telling what someone might do when proper surveillance is not in place.
“Unfortunately, this is exactly the kind of story that creates mistrust in our voting system,” the statement says. “It is critical for lawmakers and the governor to work together to fill the gaps in the system and restore faith in our elections.”
Also this week, Philadelphia Magazine reported that federal charges have been filed against a former Philadelphia judge of elections, Marie Beren, for voter fraud. Among other charges, Beren is alleged to have cast ballots for candidates in races for every level of government for other people. She also allegedly encouraged people to cast ballots on behalf of absent family members, the report said.
State Rep. Seth Grove (R-York), the sponsor of sweeping election reform legislation, said in a statement that “the latest news of election fraud out of Philadelphia is extremely concerning and illustrates why enhanced voter identification and e-poll books—provisions included in the Voting Rights Protection Act (his legislation)—are so critical in preventing fraud.
“Since current voter lists and voter history are public records, fraudsters can calculate the chances of individuals actually showing up to vote,” he added. “Fraudsters can then pose as an individual, getting around current law, and vote in the names of countless people, as was allegedly done here.”
The Republican-controlled Legislature passed Grove’s Voting Rights Protection Act (HB 1300) in late June; it was vetoed by Wolf, a Democrat, a few days later.
In September, the House State Government Committee, which Grove chairs, passed a revised version of his legislation, HB 1800.
