Norristown, Pennsylvania – Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections (“RITE”), a non-profit organization which supports litigation to protect election security and integrity, today sued Montgomery County, Pennsylvania for failing to follow state law when debuting its voter services van.
Pennsylvania law requires counties to post notices of the exact times and locations of their voter registration efforts at both the county’s main office and the location where it will be registering voters. This public notice provision ensures, among other things, that all residents have equal access to the county’s voter resources and that the counties act transparently.
Earlier this month, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania introduced Pennsylvania’s first “Voter Services Mobile Satellite Office”—a van owned by Montgomery County that roves around the suburban Philadelphia county to serve as a location where residents can register to vote, request absentee ballots, and drop off absentee ballots all in one place, at one time. According to one county official, the van will even travel to voter’s addresses to allow them to cure their defective absentee ballots. But the county has so far failed to comply with legal requirements that prohibit counties from conducting registration activities at unannounced locations.
“In Montgomery County’s race to deploy its first-of-its-kind voting van, it forgot about one crucial thing: state law,” said Derek Lyons, President and CEO of RITE. “A hallmark of good election administration is transparency, and that is why Pennsylvania’s legislature has required counties to notify the public regarding their voter registration activities. Ignoring state law so the county can register voters, give and receive absentee ballots, and allow voters to cure defective ballots all beyond view of the public sows distrust in our elections. If Montgomery County is to continue with these activities, it must comply with the public notice rules required by law.
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