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Nazareth, Pa., United States

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Pa Supreme Court: Don't Count Undated MIBs

That didn't take long. Earlier this month I told you that the Commonwealth Court concluded, in a 4-1 vote, that undated mail-in ballots (MIBs) had to be counted so long as they were received by election day. That decision was VACATED by the state supremes on Friday in a per curiam order because the elections boards of all 67 counties, which the Court considers indispensable parties, were never named as parties. 

Three justices - David Wecht, Chief Justice Debra Todd, and Christine Donahue  - dissented on the basis that a "prompt and definitive answer" to the question is sorely needed.  

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Our Election Process in America has been twisted into a pretzel, unable to be untangled. Far too many diverse and rapid changes to ever completely grasp and manage efficiently.

In a foolish mad dash to make the whole thing easy, primarily by flooding the nation with ballots strewn everywhere on the floor, we’ve unintentionally (I hope) created a mess that has destroyed accountability and trust among the population.

Say it ain’t so, Bernie.

Anonymous said...

The newspaper said that court claimed local boards "may" discard undated ballots. Why the "may", that will just muck everything up.

Bernie O'Hare said...

4:15, I linked to the opinion, and that is stated nowhere in the opinion. The court simply ruled it lacks jurisdiction bc the lawsuit failed to name all counties. You fail to link to the news article in question, but under the law as it stands now, undated ballots may NOT be counted.

Anonymous said...

I anticipate that the plaintiffs in this action may want to refile naming all 67 counties, but might have difficulty getting Commonwealth Ct jurisdiction if state entities are not proper defendants. Two cases on this issue are still pending in federal court in the Western District of PA, so a decision there could reinstate the requirement of counting misdated or undated MIBs. It sure would be nice to have some certainty and finality on this.

Anonymous said...

It's so simple just follow the rules dear Lord sign and date the envelope. It's not asking too much

Anonymous said...

So they say more democrats mail in ballots. And they say the are college educated. So help me to understand why doing this is so difficult

Anonymous said...

Read the instructions and follow directions. How do you get yourself dressed in the morning? Geez! What a bunch of crybabies.