PA Dem Gov Josh Shapiro defends counties seeking to count ineligible ballots, cites 'lack of legal clarity'

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, has defended county election officials who have openly said that they would count ineligible ballots during a senate race recount, in violation of the state Supreme Court ruling. He said that as the recount went on, officials "were confronted with a lack of legal clarity surrounging undated mail-in ballots that caused significant confusion and put counties in a challenging legal position. The Bucks County Commissioner said she knew she was breaking the law by counting mail-in ballots that had been deemed ineligble but that she intended to do so anyway.

Shapiro ultimately backed the Supreme Court ruling stating improperly dated ballots must not be counted, but also called back to what he sees as inadequate law. "Both my predecessor and I have repeatedly called on lawmakers to deliver greater clarity on mail-in voting – and due to certain legislative actors refusing to act on critical election reforms, this issue had been left to the courts," Shapiro said.

He added, “Given this lack of clarity, county officials in each of our 67 counties were damned if they did and damned if they didn’t – likely facing legal action no matter which decision they made on counting.”

Bucks County Commissioner and Democrat Diane Ellis-Marseglia said she understood that in Bucks County the Election Board was breaking the law if they counted the ineligible ballots. "I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country," she said as regards the ruling.

"People violate laws anytime they want. So, for me, if I violate this law, it’s because I want a court to pay attention. There’s nothing more important than counting votes,” Ellis-Marseglia added at the time.

"Any insinuation that our laws can be ignored or do not matter is irresponsible and does damage to faith in our electoral process. The rule of law matters in Pennsylvania," Shapiro said. He went on to say "It is critical for counties in both parties to respect it with both their rhetoric and their actions."

He said he would "continue working to protect our democracy and the votes of all eligible Pennsylvanians."

On Monday the court reaffirmed the decision in a 4-3 vote, and said Bucks, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties must not count the ineligible ballots.

The court ordered that all counties "including the Boards of Elections in Bucks County, Montgomery County, and Philadelphia County, SHALL COMPLY with the prior rulings of this Court in which we have clarified that mail-in and absentee ballots that fail to comply with the requirements of the Pennsylvania Election Code ... SHALL NOT BE COUNTED for purposes of the election held on November 5, 2024."

A recount between Casey and McCormick has been ordered. McCormick has been projected to be the winner of the US Senate race in the Keystone State. Casey has refused to concede and has insisted on the recount.