Keystone Today

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied a request to stay its order regarding a case seeking to block the certification of the election results in the commonwealth.

“AND NOW, this 3rd day of December, 2020, the Emergency Application for Stay of this Court’s Order of November 28, 2020, is DENIED,” the order states. 

The case involved U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Butler), candidate Sean Parnell, Thomas A. Frank, Nancy Kierzek, Derek Magee, Robin Sauter, Michael Kincaid and Wanda Logan against Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania General Assembly, Gov. Thomas W. Wolf and Secretary of the Commonwealth Kathy Boockvar.

In November, the individuals filed the lawsuit, arguing that the mail-in voting statute violated the commonwealth’s constitution.

Judge Patricia A. McCullough ordered the certification efforts to be halted because of the case’s arguments regarding Act 77.

The plaintiffs believe that Act 77 was illegally implemented last year and is yet another attempt at overriding mail-in voting limitations.

“Despite the lack of constitutional authority to pass a universal mail-in voting scheme — a scheme which far eclipses any previously conscribed absentee voting scheme — the legislature proceeded to implement Act 77 anyway, in direct contravention of the Pennsylvania Constitution,” the complaint states, Keystone Today previously reported.

In her order last month, McCullough wrote that the state and others were enjoined from certifying the remaining results until an evidentiary hearing could be held.

An evidentiary hearing was scheduled for Nov. 27 virtually. The plaintiffs filed with the state Supreme Court earlier this week.

Throughout the state over the last month, there have been many issues brought to light, including a woman saying in an op-ed that the state was hurrying through voting rules because of COVID-19. Another news article pointed to Republican poll watchers in Philadelphia not being allowed to observe during early voting, Keystone Today previously reported.