Keystone Today

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro (D) and Gov. Tom Wolf (D) are receiving criticism for vetoing House Bill 1300, a compilation of laws regarding election integrity reform.

According to the Election Transparency Initiative, Wolf has vetoed the Voting Rights Protection Act, with Shapiro backing Wolf’s veto. On June 30, Shapiro tweeted, “It's because we have Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf in the governor’s office that their voter suppression legislation won’t become law. His veto pen will stop this bill — and we’ve got to hold onto that veto pen.”

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives State Government Committee spent four months studying election reforms to strengthen integrity and issued a 99-page report detailing their recommendations, to no avail.

Josh Shapiro | Pennsylvania AG website

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, many of the recommendations focus on shoring up the absentee ballot process, after Pennsylvania had a record 2.6 million absentee voters in the 2020 election, which overwhelmed election officials and delayed results for over a week.

The GOP-supported election integrity law, HB 1300, would have mandated voter ID in all statewide elections, moved up the deadline for voter registration and mandated an earlier date to submit absentee ballots, according to Keystone Today.

Pennsylvania Sen. Jake Corman (R-Bellefonte) and Sen. Kim Ward (R-Hempfield Township) recently indicated that the Pennsylvania Senate would continue to fight for election reform, despite the governor’s veto.

Their joint statement said: "In spite of this setback, Senate Republicans will continue our efforts to strengthen our election system, improve voter participation and access, and support our counties in managing our elections. Our Special Committee on Election Integrity and Reform identified a more limited set of recommendations that were approved with bipartisan support. Those recommendations will form the basis of our election reform efforts in the fall," according to 8WGAL.

According to the Election Transparency Initiative, the Voting Rights Protection Act would “increase voter access and improve ballot security, transparency and accountability by adding: county-issued voter ID protections, signature verification to verify voter eligibility, a Bureau of Election Audits, updated procedures to help voters with disabilities, faster lines at polling places, enhanced training and higher pay for election workers, state funding to help pay for elections, poll observer protections, penalties for attempting to intimidate an election official, expanded voter registration deadline (15 days to 30 days before election), drop-box security, [and] voter list maintenance.”

The voting measure seems to have strong approval from all supporters of the political spectrum.

A recent Franklin and Marshall College poll found that 81% of Pennsylvania respondents -- including 88% of independents and 64% of Democrats -- support signature matching for mail-in ballots. Seventy-four percent support photo ID mandates, including 77% of independent voters.

National Chairman of the Election Transparency Initiative and former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R) said, “There’s a reason why common-sense voter integrity measures, such as photo ID and signature verification for mail-in ballots, are so popular. They help ensure a fair, secure and transparent system of elections voters can trust. Not only did the Wolf-Shapiro veto put them at odds with their constituents on these key protections, but they also thumbed their noses at measures to bolster voter access, including expanded voter registration deadlines, reduced wait times at polling places, assistance for disabled voters, enhanced training and higher pay for election workers, and so much more.”

The "integrity of voting" laws have also seen strong support across all demographics.

According to the Election Transparency Initiative, 64% of voters -- including black (51%) and Hispanic (66%) voters, as well as urban (59%) and independent (61%) voters -- want to increase voting safeguards that  mitigate fraud, not decrease them.