{"id":2363821,"date":"2024-11-04T12:33:01","date_gmt":"2024-11-04T17:33:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/thousands-of-pennsylvania-ballots-challenged-in-what-state-calls-bad-faith-effort-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-11-04T12:36:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-04T17:36:00","slug":"thousands-of-pennsylvania-ballots-challenged-in-what-state-calls-bad-faith-effort-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/thousands-of-pennsylvania-ballots-challenged-in-what-state-calls-bad-faith-effort-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Thousands of Pennsylvania ballots challenged in what state calls \u2018bad-faith\u2019 effort &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fthousands-of-pennsylvania-ballots-challenged-in-what-state-calls-bad-faith-effort-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2363821&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A \u200dcoordinated effort by right-wing activists has led to the challenge of at least 4,000 overseas ballots \u200din Pennsylvania, just days\u2064 before the election. The Pennsylvania Department of State has described these challenges as a &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/limbaugh-the-lefts-ongoing-campaign-to-denigrate-trump-supporters\/\" title=\"LIMBAUGH: The Left\u2019s Ongoing Campaign To Denigrate Trump Supporters\">bad-faith<\/a>&#8221; attempt to invalidate mail-in ballots submitted by voters who claim they have moved overseas or changed their addresses. However, U.S. law allows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/imf-demands-el-salvador-give-up-on-bitcoin\/\" title=\"IMF Demands El Salvador Give Up on Bitcoin\">citizens living abroad<\/a>\u2063 to vote using \u2064the \u2064last \u200cstate they resided in, regardless of their current residency status. Challenges \u2062have \u2064been\u200c reported in at \u200dleast\u2062 14 counties, with \u200cthe largest number\u2014more than 1,300\u2014occurring in\u200d Bucks County.<\/p>\n<p>The activists behind the challenges are linked to groups \u2063like the Election Research Institute and PA Fair Elections,\u200c which have connections to individuals who have\u2063 previously\u2064 promoted election\u2063 misinformation. While \u2064some counties have dismissed these challenges, others\u2064 have not\u2062 yet ruled on their \u200cvalidity. Legal experts \u2062assert that federal protections ensure the rights of these overseas voters to participate\u200d in federal elections, \u2062even\u2063 if they aren&#8217;t registered in\u2063 Pennsylvania.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Thousands of Pennsylvania ballots challenged in what state calls &lsquo;bad-faith&rsquo; effort<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1867977\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>At least 4,000 overseas <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ballots\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">ballots<\/a> in multiple <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/Pennsylvania\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Pennsylvania<\/a> counties have been challenged by what appears to be right-wing activists just days ahead of the election.<\/p>\n<p>At least 14 counties have received challenges seeking to invalidate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3212078\/everything-know-ballot-canvassing-ahead-election-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">mail ballots<\/a>, in which the challenges claim there is evidence showing voters had moved overseas or had submitted a change-of-address request with the U.S. Postal Service. Neither scenario necessarily makes a voter ineligible to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3199748\/over-1m-ballots-already-cast-in-pennsylvania\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">cast a ballot<\/a> in Pennsylvania as the law states that a citizen of the United States living overseas can use the last state they lived in as their voting state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The commonwealth of Pennsylvania is calling this a &ldquo;bad-faith&rdquo; coordinated challenge.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/live-blog\/2024-election-campaign-live-updates-harris-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2024 ELECTIONS LIVE UPDATES: LATEST NEWS ON THE TRUMP-HARRIS PRESIDENTIAL RACE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Throughout the day on Friday, several bad-faith mass challenges were filed in a coordinated effort in counties across the Commonwealth to question the qualifications of thousands of registered Pennsylvania voters who applied to vote by mail ballot,&rdquo; said Amy Gulli, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of State.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These challenges are based on theories that courts have repeatedly rejected,&rdquo; Gulli continued.<\/p>\n<p>The bulk of the new challenges are claiming that because the voter lives outside of the U.S. and is not technically eligible to register as a Pennsylvania voter, they should not be eligible to vote, according to<a href=\"https:\/\/lancasteronline.com\/news\/pennsylvania\/more-than-4-000-mail-in-voters-receive-legal-challenge-across-14-pa-counties-update\/article_1ad97036-9935-11ef-bb1d-5387a9cc9e78.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> <em>LancasterOnline<\/em><\/a>. The 1986 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fvap.gov\/uploads\/FVAP\/Policies\/uocavalaw.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act<\/a>, however, established that U.S. citizens and military personnel living overseas could continue to vote by absentee ballot in the state that they last lived in. They are known as &ldquo;federal only&rdquo; voters because these voters can participate only in federal races, such as the one for president, but not local races.<\/p>\n<p>These challenges range from a dozen in Clinton County to more than 1,300 ballots in Bucks County. In Chester County, at least one county that has already held its hearing, the challenges were dismissed.<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s unclear exactly who or what groups are behind all of the challenges, but some confirmed challengers point to right-wing activists being behind them. Challenge petitions reviewed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.votebeat.org\/pennsylvania\/2024\/11\/04\/mail-ballot-application-challenges-uocava-voters-overseas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Votebeat<\/a> and Spotlight PA, as well as information provided by county officials, show the challenges came from those associated with the Election Research Institute and PA Fair Elections.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>These two groups are led by Heather Honey, a Pennsylvania researcher who has provided faulty information and contributed to election denialism since the 2020 election. PA Fair Elections has denied filing any change-of-address challenges or having any filed on its behalf, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/politics\/election\/heather-honey-pa-fair-elections-vote-challenges-pennsylvania-20241101.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">according to the <em>Philadelphia Inquirer<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, Diane Houser, who filed challenges in Chester County, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/politics\/election\/heather-honey-pa-fair-elections-vote-challenges-pennsylvania-20241101.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">confirmed at a hearing Friday<\/a> that she was working with PA Fair Elections and the challenges were part of a &ldquo;statewide effort.&rdquo; Challenges in Delaware County were filed by Patricia Bleasdale, who has also attended PA Fair Elections meetings. Twenty-eight challenges were filed on Friday in Allegheny County by Charles Faltenovich, who is also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.alleghenycounty.us\/files\/assets\/county\/v\/1\/government\/elections\/documents\/board-of-elections\/2024\/public-comment-04-15-24.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">associated with PA Fair Elections<\/a>, according to a county spokesperson.<\/p>\n<p>Marian Schneider, <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">senior voting rights policy counsel<\/a> at the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania, said federal law protects the rights of these citizens to participate in federal elections, even if they are not registered in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n<p>She said voters cannot register to vote, as they are not Pennsylvania residents, but UOCAVA gives overseas citizens the right to vote in the last state they lived in.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s people who don&rsquo;t understand the law or didn&rsquo;t take time to research the law that are filing these challenges, just because they are not in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/stacey-abrams-voting-rights-pac-helped-group-that-pushed-voter-fraud-conspiracy-theories\/\" title=\"Stacey Abrams\u2019 Voting Rights PAC Helped Group That Pushed Voter Fraud Conspiracy Theories\">voter registration database<\/a>,&rdquo; Schneider told Votebeat. &ldquo;These are misguided attempts to silence the voice of voters, and these challenges represent a misunderstanding of what their status is and what the law is.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The ACLU sent a letter to all 67 Pennsylvania counties on Sunday notifying them that if they received these challenges, they were &ldquo;legally deficient&rdquo; and cautioned the counties against preventing overseas voters from casting ballots based on these challenges.<\/p>\n<p>Judges <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3198120\/judges-michigan-north-carolina-reject-gop-challenge-overseas-ballots\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">dismissed similar challenges <\/a>from the Republican National Committee to overseas voters in North Carolina and Michigan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1867977\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1867977\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Thousands of Pennsylvania ballots challenged in &#8216;bad-faith&#8217; effort<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2910,"featured_media":2363822,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/ap-allegheny-county-pennsylvania-ballot-usps-110424.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[9807,6571,5836,32603,44323],"class_list":["post-2363821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-ballots","tag-elections","tag-pennsylvania","tag-political-news","tag-voter-challenges"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/ap-allegheny-county-pennsylvania-ballot-usps-110424.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2363821"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2363829,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363821\/revisions\/2363829"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2363822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2363821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2363821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2363821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}