PA judge orders Washington Township election judge to NOT hand count ballots after he planned to defy orders

The Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas has directed a Fayette County election judge to refrain from hand-counting ballots and turn over all election materials once the polls close at 8 pm. This after the Fayette County Bureau of Elections Director had called on the court to intervene after Vincent Manetta, the judge of elections for Washington Township, announced his intention to hand count ballots after the polls closed for the evening despite being told not to.

The court order stated that if Manetta failed to comply, an officer of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department would intervene and escort a poll worker and election materials from the Washington Township precinct to the Fayette County Election Bureau, as per WGAL 8 News.

The order was issued by Judge Linda Cordaro who wrote: "The Sheriff's Department shall also similarly escort any other Fayette County precinct which is acting outside of the authority outlined in the (state) statute."

Any other election official in the Fayette County precinct who attempts to count ballots by hand will also be hauled out by the sheriff's department, Judge Cordaro said.

A petition submitted by Marybeth Kuznik, the director of the Fayette County Bureau of Election, filed the lawsuit in an effort to compel Manetta to comply with their instructions. She claimed in the complaint that a hand count would delay vote tallying by several hours.

Pennsylvania is one of seven critical swing states that could decide the outcome of the 2024 Presidential Election.