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UrduAt a campaign rally in Allentown, PA., one of several in the important battleground state of Pennsylvania, President Donald Trump brought up a false claim about a lawsuit concerning poll watchers in Philadelphia.
“Did you see where they fought us because they didn’t want poll watchers. They took us to court and we had a bad decision. … This judge … he said no you can’t have poll watchers. So he’s saying we can’t even watch as they count the ballots. But we’re going to appeal it and we’ll end up winning,” said Trump.
The truth is that it was the Trump campaign that filed the lawsuit in early October. The Trump campaign sued the Philadelphia County Board of Elections in order to have its campaign representatives be able to observe what was happening at new election satellite offices across the city. Ballots are NOT counted at these satellite offices. Judge Gary Glazer didn’t rule that the campaign couldn’t have poll watchers at actual polling locations where votes are counted. The judge upheld the law that the Trump campaign could not send its representatives to the election board’s satellite offices because votes are not counted at those locations.
As Glazer explained: “The only activities occurring at the satellite offices are voter registration, application for mail-in ballots by individual voters, provision of mail-in ballots to individual voters, private completion of mail-in ballots by individual voters, and delivery by individual voters of their own mail-in ballots. No canvassing, re-canvassing, opening, counting, recounting, computation, or recording of ballots, votes, or voting machines is occurring at the satellite offices.”
Thus, he concluded, “Given their scope, timing, and purpose, the satellite offices do not constitute polling places where watchers have a right to be present under the Election Code.”
A Pennsylvania appeals court upheld Glazer’s ruling on Oct. 23.
