McCormick Joins RNC In Lawsuit to Stop Montco Mail Ballot Distribution
Suit would stop Montgomery County from distributing and collecting until L&A testing is complete
September 23, 2024
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Suit would stop Montgomery County from distributing and collecting until L&A testing is complete
In the on-again, off-again saga of mail ballots in Pennsylvania, the Republican National Committee, with a little help from a U.S. Senate candidate, is looking to stop a populous PA county from distributing and collecting mail ballots.
The RNC and Dave McCormick filed a lawsuit on Friday that would temporarily stop Montgomery County from the process and also require the county to hand count all mail ballots that were already distributed.
Montgomery County, the third-largest county in the Keystone State with nearly 620,000 registered voters, announced last Tuesday that ballots were available coming a day after the Pennsylvania Department of State certified the candidates.
The lawsuit claims that the county’s quick start violated Pennsylvania election law because ballots were distributed before the country began state-mandated logic and accuracy testing on election systems.
“This is really simple: every county should follow Pennsylvania’s election law,” said McCormick comms director Elizabeth Gregory.
According to a DOS directive from last March, “all counties in Pennsylvania must conduct pre-election logic and accuracy testing (L&A testing) prior to every election (primary, general, special, or municipal) that is conducted in the jurisdiction, pursuant to the Election Code (25 P.S. §2621, § 3031)
L&A testing is a series of pre-election steps intended to ensure that ballots, scanners, ballot marking devices, and all components of a county’s certified voting system are properly configured and in good working order prior to being used in an election. These steps must include every procedure that counties will use in the actual election.”
The RNC lawsuit said that “defendants were aware that the L&A testing had not been completed on September 17, 2024 and public stated it would not commence until September 19, 2024.”
Montgomery County communications director Megan Alt said in a statement shared that the assertions in the lawsuit were baseless and not true.
“Montgomery County completed ballot acceptance testing before any ballots were printed. Ballot acceptance testing ensures that marks on ballots can be accurately and efficiently scanned by the high-speed scanners once voters return the completed ballots.
“The County then completed its logic and accuracy testing of the central scanners that will be used in the precanvass and canvass of mail-in ballots. Once the central scanners’ logic and accuracy testing was completed, Montgomery County began to deliver mail-in ballots to the post office. Logic and accuracy testing for the precinct-level scanners used for the in-person portion of the election is ongoing.
“Montgomery County is fully complying with the Pennsylvania Election Code and Department of State directives. The 115,000 Montgomery County voters who have requested mail-in ballots already will receive those ballots soon. Montgomery County encourages all qualified electors to make their plans for voting in the 2024 General Election and exercising their franchise.”
The Pennsylvania Department of State released a statement that read, “The lawsuit filed Friday against Montgomery County is frivolous, and Montgomery County’s board of elections did everything required before printing ballots with the certified candidate list.
“Every county is required – under state law and under the Department of State’s Directive on Logic and Accuracy Testing – to conduct logic and accuracy (L&A) testing on its voting system before Election Day.
“The Election Code does not require that L&A testing of voting systems be conducted before a county makes mail ballots available. Counties must certify to DOS at least 15 days before an election that they have successfully completed the testing.
“Pennsylvania’s elections are free, fair, safe, and secure because of the many safeguards – such as L&A testing – that surround our voting processes and systems before, during, and after Election Day.”
Should the lawsuit be successful, any of those 115,000 ballots returned would have to be hand counted if the lawsuit is successful. That would be certain to slow down the process of tabulating the vote total and also raise questions about the accuracy of the count.
In the on-again, off-again saga of mail ballots in Pennsylvania, the Republican National Committee, with a little help from a U.S. Senate candidate, is looking to stop a populous PA county from distributing and collecting mail ballots.
The RNC and Dave McCormick filed a lawsuit on Friday that would temporarily stop Montgomery County from the process and also require the county to hand count all mail ballots that were already distributed.
Montgomery County, the third-largest county in the Keystone State with nearly 620,000 registered voters, announced last Tuesday that ballots were available coming a day after the Pennsylvania Department of State certified the candidates.
The lawsuit claims that the county’s quick start violated Pennsylvania election law because ballots were distributed before the country began state-mandated logic and accuracy testing on election systems.
“This is really simple: every county should follow Pennsylvania’s election law,” said McCormick comms director Elizabeth Gregory.
According to a DOS directive from last March, “all counties in Pennsylvania must conduct pre-election logic and accuracy testing (L&A testing) prior to every election (primary, general, special, or municipal) that is conducted in the jurisdiction, pursuant to the Election Code (25 P.S. §2621, § 3031)
L&A testing is a series of pre-election steps intended to ensure that ballots, scanners, ballot marking devices, and all components of a county’s certified voting system are properly configured and in good working order prior to being used in an election. These steps must include every procedure that counties will use in the actual election.”
The RNC lawsuit said that “defendants were aware that the L&A testing had not been completed on September 17, 2024 and public stated it would not commence until September 19, 2024.”
Montgomery County communications director Megan Alt said in a statement shared that the assertions in the lawsuit were baseless and not true.
“Montgomery County completed ballot acceptance testing before any ballots were printed. Ballot acceptance testing ensures that marks on ballots can be accurately and efficiently scanned by the high-speed scanners once voters return the completed ballots.
“The County then completed its logic and accuracy testing of the central scanners that will be used in the precanvass and canvass of mail-in ballots. Once the central scanners’ logic and accuracy testing was completed, Montgomery County began to deliver mail-in ballots to the post office. Logic and accuracy testing for the precinct-level scanners used for the in-person portion of the election is ongoing.
“Montgomery County is fully complying with the Pennsylvania Election Code and Department of State directives. The 115,000 Montgomery County voters who have requested mail-in ballots already will receive those ballots soon. Montgomery County encourages all qualified electors to make their plans for voting in the 2024 General Election and exercising their franchise.”
The Pennsylvania Department of State released a statement that read, “The lawsuit filed Friday against Montgomery County is frivolous, and Montgomery County’s board of elections did everything required before printing ballots with the certified candidate list.
“Every county is required – under state law and under the Department of State’s Directive on Logic and Accuracy Testing – to conduct logic and accuracy (L&A) testing on its voting system before Election Day.
“The Election Code does not require that L&A testing of voting systems be conducted before a county makes mail ballots available. Counties must certify to DOS at least 15 days before an election that they have successfully completed the testing.
“Pennsylvania’s elections are free, fair, safe, and secure because of the many safeguards – such as L&A testing – that surround our voting processes and systems before, during, and after Election Day.”
Should the lawsuit be successful, any of those 115,000 ballots returned would have to be hand counted if the lawsuit is successful. That would be certain to slow down the process of tabulating the vote total and also raise questions about the accuracy of the count.
In the on-again, off-again saga of mail ballots in Pennsylvania, the Republican National Committee, with a little help from a U.S. Senate candidate, is looking to stop a populous PA county from distributing and collecting mail ballots.
The RNC and Dave McCormick filed a lawsuit on Friday that would temporarily stop Montgomery County from the process and also require the county to hand count all mail ballots that were already distributed.
Montgomery County, the third-largest county in the Keystone State with nearly 620,000 registered voters, announced last Tuesday that ballots were available coming a day after the Pennsylvania Department of State certified the candidates.
The lawsuit claims that the county’s quick start violated Pennsylvania election law because ballots were distributed before the country began state-mandated logic and accuracy testing on election systems.
“This is really simple: every county should follow Pennsylvania’s election law,” said McCormick comms director Elizabeth Gregory.
According to a DOS directive from last March, “all counties in Pennsylvania must conduct pre-election logic and accuracy testing (L&A testing) prior to every election (primary, general, special, or municipal) that is conducted in the jurisdiction, pursuant to the Election Code (25 P.S. §2621, § 3031)
L&A testing is a series of pre-election steps intended to ensure that ballots, scanners, ballot marking devices, and all components of a county’s certified voting system are properly configured and in good working order prior to being used in an election. These steps must include every procedure that counties will use in the actual election.”
The RNC lawsuit said that “defendants were aware that the L&A testing had not been completed on September 17, 2024 and public stated it would not commence until September 19, 2024.”
Montgomery County communications director Megan Alt said in a statement shared that the assertions in the lawsuit were baseless and not true.
“Montgomery County completed ballot acceptance testing before any ballots were printed. Ballot acceptance testing ensures that marks on ballots can be accurately and efficiently scanned by the high-speed scanners once voters return the completed ballots.
“The County then completed its logic and accuracy testing of the central scanners that will be used in the precanvass and canvass of mail-in ballots. Once the central scanners’ logic and accuracy testing was completed, Montgomery County began to deliver mail-in ballots to the post office. Logic and accuracy testing for the precinct-level scanners used for the in-person portion of the election is ongoing.
“Montgomery County is fully complying with the Pennsylvania Election Code and Department of State directives. The 115,000 Montgomery County voters who have requested mail-in ballots already will receive those ballots soon. Montgomery County encourages all qualified electors to make their plans for voting in the 2024 General Election and exercising their franchise.”
The Pennsylvania Department of State released a statement that read, “The lawsuit filed Friday against Montgomery County is frivolous, and Montgomery County’s board of elections did everything required before printing ballots with the certified candidate list.
“Every county is required – under state law and under the Department of State’s Directive on Logic and Accuracy Testing – to conduct logic and accuracy (L&A) testing on its voting system before Election Day.
“The Election Code does not require that L&A testing of voting systems be conducted before a county makes mail ballots available. Counties must certify to DOS at least 15 days before an election that they have successfully completed the testing.
“Pennsylvania’s elections are free, fair, safe, and secure because of the many safeguards – such as L&A testing – that surround our voting processes and systems before, during, and after Election Day.”
Should the lawsuit be successful, any of those 115,000 ballots returned would have to be hand counted if the lawsuit is successful. That would be certain to slow down the process of tabulating the vote total and also raise questions about the accuracy of the count.
In the on-again, off-again saga of mail ballots in Pennsylvania, the Republican National Committee, with a little help from a U.S. Senate candidate, is looking to stop a populous PA county from distributing and collecting mail ballots.
The RNC and Dave McCormick filed a lawsuit on Friday that would temporarily stop Montgomery County from the process and also require the county to hand count all mail ballots that were already distributed.
Montgomery County, the third-largest county in the Keystone State with nearly 620,000 registered voters, announced last Tuesday that ballots were available coming a day after the Pennsylvania Department of State certified the candidates.
The lawsuit claims that the county’s quick start violated Pennsylvania election law because ballots were distributed before the country began state-mandated logic and accuracy testing on election systems.
“This is really simple: every county should follow Pennsylvania’s election law,” said McCormick comms director Elizabeth Gregory.
According to a DOS directive from last March, “all counties in Pennsylvania must conduct pre-election logic and accuracy testing (L&A testing) prior to every election (primary, general, special, or municipal) that is conducted in the jurisdiction, pursuant to the Election Code (25 P.S. §2621, § 3031)
L&A testing is a series of pre-election steps intended to ensure that ballots, scanners, ballot marking devices, and all components of a county’s certified voting system are properly configured and in good working order prior to being used in an election. These steps must include every procedure that counties will use in the actual election.”
The RNC lawsuit said that “defendants were aware that the L&A testing had not been completed on September 17, 2024 and public stated it would not commence until September 19, 2024.”
Montgomery County communications director Megan Alt said in a statement shared that the assertions in the lawsuit were baseless and not true.
“Montgomery County completed ballot acceptance testing before any ballots were printed. Ballot acceptance testing ensures that marks on ballots can be accurately and efficiently scanned by the high-speed scanners once voters return the completed ballots.
“The County then completed its logic and accuracy testing of the central scanners that will be used in the precanvass and canvass of mail-in ballots. Once the central scanners’ logic and accuracy testing was completed, Montgomery County began to deliver mail-in ballots to the post office. Logic and accuracy testing for the precinct-level scanners used for the in-person portion of the election is ongoing.
“Montgomery County is fully complying with the Pennsylvania Election Code and Department of State directives. The 115,000 Montgomery County voters who have requested mail-in ballots already will receive those ballots soon. Montgomery County encourages all qualified electors to make their plans for voting in the 2024 General Election and exercising their franchise.”
The Pennsylvania Department of State released a statement that read, “The lawsuit filed Friday against Montgomery County is frivolous, and Montgomery County’s board of elections did everything required before printing ballots with the certified candidate list.
“Every county is required – under state law and under the Department of State’s Directive on Logic and Accuracy Testing – to conduct logic and accuracy (L&A) testing on its voting system before Election Day.
“The Election Code does not require that L&A testing of voting systems be conducted before a county makes mail ballots available. Counties must certify to DOS at least 15 days before an election that they have successfully completed the testing.
“Pennsylvania’s elections are free, fair, safe, and secure because of the many safeguards – such as L&A testing – that surround our voting processes and systems before, during, and after Election Day.”
Should the lawsuit be successful, any of those 115,000 ballots returned would have to be hand counted if the lawsuit is successful. That would be certain to slow down the process of tabulating the vote total and also raise questions about the accuracy of the count.
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