Keystone Today

Poll watchers would not be restricted to their county of residence and would be allowed a clear line of sight of the canvassing of ballots (examining votes for authenticity) under Senate Bill 573, cleared by the House State Government Committee along a 14-10 party line vote this week.

“Increasing the number of eligible poll watchers for all political parties and candidates adds another layer of observation to ensure that election laws are strictly adhered to,” the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Cumberland), told Keystone Today in an email. “Allowing ‘out of county’ poll watchers ensures that minority parties will have equal poll watcher representation at all polling places throughout the commonwealth; particularly in counties where it may be difficult to recruit poll watchers of the same party.”

Mastriano is the Republican nominee for the governor.

The line-of-sight provision in the legislation was taken from election reform measure Senate Bill 322, sponsored by Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair). Ward spokesman Greg Beckenbaugh said that her legislation also includes procedures to handle instances where signatures on mail ballots don’t match those on file, and clarifies that only those ballots received by 8 p.m. Election Day may be canvassed.

The only exception would be military overseas ballots.

In the bill’s sponsorship memo, Ward said that she believed “the PA Supreme Court overstepped its boundaries by allowing ballots to be accepted up to three days after Election Day when current law explicitly states completed ballots 'must be received in the office of the county board of elections no later than eight o’clock p.m. on the day of the primary or election.'"

SB 322 awaits action on the Senate floor.

The Republican-controlled General Assembly has been trying a piecemeal approach to election reform ever since Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, vetoed an expansive bill, HB 1300, last June.

On the Mastriano bill, Wolf spokesperson told PennLive.com that they were “critical” of the measure, that it was “an attempt by Mastriano ‘who has repeatedly sought to undermine the integrity of our election process – to encourage voter intimidation.’”