{"id":2371379,"date":"2024-11-20T16:29:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T21:29:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/constituents-demand-pa-commissioners-who-defied-law-resign\/"},"modified":"2024-11-20T16:31:16","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T21:31:16","slug":"constituents-demand-pa-commissioners-who-defied-law-resign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/constituents-demand-pa-commissioners-who-defied-law-resign\/","title":{"rendered":"Constituents Demand PA Commissioners Who Defied Law Resign"},"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\">16<\/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%2Fconstituents-demand-pa-commissioners-who-defied-law-resign%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=2371379&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>On \u2062Wednesday, a large and frustrated\u2062 crowd\u2063 demanded the resignation \u200cof \u200cBucks County Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia\u2063 after her controversial remarks regarding counting improperly\u200b cast ballots. Ellis-Marseglia had claimed she would defy Pennsylvania law to ensure every vote was counted, igniting public outrage. Alongside her, \u2062fellow Democrat Commissioner Robert Harvie Jr. \u200cfaced calls \u200cfor resignation as\u200c he supported her proposal.<\/p>\n<p>Previously, several Pennsylvania counties led\u2064 by Democrats had similarly\u200c opted to count improper votes, \u200dwhich contradicted\u2062 a clear ruling from the state Supreme Court. During the commissioners&#8217; meeting,\u200c Ellis-Marseglia apologized \u200cfor\u200d her remarks, attributing her outburst to personal \u200bfrustration over the inconsistent \u200cinterpretation of Supreme Court rules. However,\u200c legal precedents against\u2063 counting such votes have been established for years, and the\u200d Bucks County solicitor\u2064 had explicitly \u2064advised against it.<\/p>\n<p>Despite her apology, audience members remained skeptical, with some suggesting that her regret was \u200cmore about\u2063 public backlash than genuine \u200cremorse. The\u200b meeting drew around\u200c 200 attendees who\u2062 expressed their displeasure and\u2062 some demanded legal \u200cconsequences for the commissioners&#8217; \u2063actions. Public\u2064 speakers \u200bcriticized \u2064the commissioners for violating their\u200c oaths to\u2062 uphold the law, asserting that \u2063they undermined public trust in the electoral process. The meeting\u2063 concluded \u200cwithout further statements from the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">commissioners \u2064amidst \u200congoing\u200d discontent<\/a> from the audience.  <\/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<div>\n<p>On Wednesday, an angry, standing-room-only crowd called for the resignation of Bucks County Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia, who made national headlines last week when she defiantly said she would ignore election law and count improperly cast ballots. The public also asked for the resignation of Democrat Commissioner Robert Harvie Jr., who seconded her motion and voted to pass the plan. <\/p>\n<p>Multiple Democrat-led Pennsylvania counties voted to count improper votes in defiance of Pennsylvania law. But Ellis-Marseglia&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/11\/17\/bob-casey-endorsed-bucks-county-board-now-boosting-his-recount-against-court-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">comments<\/a>, made while deciding which provisional votes to count, crystallized the mindset of county election officials ignoring the law. Since then the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/11\/18\/pennsylvania-supreme-court-once-again-rules-counties-shall-not-count-illegal-ballots\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reiterated<\/a> its guidance not to count improperly cast ballots. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Precedent by a court doesn&rsquo;t matter anymore in this country, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bucks-county-commissioners-vote-to-count-illegal-ballots-in-pennsylvania-recount-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Bucks County commissioners vote to count illegal ballots in Pennsylvania recount - Washington Examiner\">people violate laws anytime<\/a> they want,&rdquo; Ellis-Marseglia said last week. &ldquo;So for me, if I violate this law, it is because I want a court to pay attention to it, and there is nothing more important than counting votes and I&rsquo;ll take it all the way.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>During Wednesday&rsquo;s regular commissioner meeting, she apologized.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Last Thursday when I spoke &hellip; the passion in my heart got the best of me, and I apologize again for that,&rdquo; Ellis-Marseglia <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FSjLWrcxeH4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I am alone in the frustrations I had that day. Many counties get confused and confounded by the Supreme Court rules because they have changed at different times. I looked forward to the court taking a stand on this.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>But there was already plenty of information for her clarity. The issue of counting mail ballots that are improperly dated or fully undated has been litigated in Pennsylvania court for several years. Pennsylvania law says such ballots shall not be counted. Before the election, the state Supreme Court ordered counties not to count such ballots. The Bucks County solicitor advised commissioners not to count those ballots. Republican commissioner Gene DiGirolamo voted against counting improper ballots but was outvoted on the three-member board. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Ellis-Marseglia said her comments were taken &ldquo;out of context&rdquo; and &ldquo;clipped,&rdquo; implying that people just didn&rsquo;t understand what she meant. But a complete recording of her comments on the county <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BucksCountyGovt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">website<\/a> shows her words were perfectly understood.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I have literally been contacted by hundreds of people, and I&rsquo;m being honest with you: all of them involved horrible, horrible expletives,&rdquo; Ellis-Marseglia said.<\/p>\n<p>The Federalist used professional language when reaching out to Ellis-Marseglia for comment. She did not respond.<\/p>\n<p>She said her life has been threatened, as well as members of her family and county workers.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I made a mistake, and because I am an elected official, I am held to a far higher standard than everybody else. So to the citizens I serve, I apologize, and I will continue to work hard for you and endeavor to &hellip; not make such a mistake again. I will also clarify one more thing: When I unartfully spoke and used the word precedent when I was talking about provisional ballots, I was referring to the United States Supreme Court and the precedent that has been lost on many issues, including <em>Roe v. Wade<\/em>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>At this remark, the audience groaned, booed, and offered much eye-rolling. She whacked her gavel to shut them up. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Unfortunately, I took my frustration out on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, many of whom are friends of mine and who I respect and whose decisions are complicated, difficult, and important. &hellip; I am a small fish in this big pond. I do not have a megaphone on Twitter or CNN. Or I am not a secretary of state. I don&rsquo;t run a presidential campaign. This is the only opportunity I have had to set the record straight. &hellip; Today is the only chance I have to stop the snowballing. And I don&rsquo;t really think I could apologize anymore, but I am truthfully sorry.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A member of the audience later quipped that it was more likely she was sorry she was caught by the public.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It is not easy for people to attend meetings during <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-hosts-bbq-at-white-house-as-americans-are-likely-killed-taken-as-hostages\/\" title=\"Biden Organizes White House BBQ Amidst American Casualties and Hostage Situations\">regular working hours<\/a>, yet around 200 members of the public attended the 10:30 a.m. meeting to voice their displeasure and ask for the resignations of Ellis-Marseglia and Harvie. Some called for charges of contempt of court or other charges for ignoring the law.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>During public comment, speakers had three minutes to make their point, then their microphone was cut off. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>One speaker, an elected judge of elections, said he has served for more than 25 elections.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Each time I serve, I take an oath to administer the election in accordance with Pennsylvania law. You take a similar oath to perform your duties as commissioners, according to the law. Throughout this election cycle, you&rsquo;ve done a poor job, as demonstrated by the many comments here today. This past week, you violated your oaths of office knowingly and willfully and against the advice of counsel, and allowed for the counting of illegal ballots,&rdquo; the judge of elections said. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If as a judge, I allowed ineligible voters to cast votes at the polls on Election Day, I&rsquo;d be promptly removed from office and prosecuted by the district attorney. The two of you make a mockery of our election process and take away the faith that people have in the process. You two should be removed from office and you should be prosecuted. Do the county a favor and resign.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The other speakers had similar messages, adding that the commissioners, who have donated to Sen. Bob Casey and were <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/11\/17\/bob-casey-endorsed-bucks-county-board-now-boosting-his-recount-against-court-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">endorsed<\/a> by him, are partisan, and there is no place for a partisan mindset when they are serving on the board of elections.<\/p>\n<p>At the end of public comments, it appeared that Harvie was going to make a comment, but the audience was not silent, and he abruptly adjourned the meeting. Harvie, however, issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/buckscounty.gov\/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1161\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a> after the state Supreme Court ruled the votes he intended to count should not be counted.<\/p>\n<p>He complained about the &ldquo;rhetoric and innuendo,&rdquo; and &ldquo;baseless claims that members of the board were attempting to sway the outcome of an election by choosing to count certain mail-in and provisional ballots. These claims are unequivocally nonsense.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In the case of undated and misdated mail-in ballots cast in this election, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has told us today that those votes cast by registered Bucks County voters shall not be counted for the purposes of the Nov. 5, 2024, General Election. This is precisely the clarity we were seeking from the courts in this matter. The Board of Elections will of course comply with the order of the court.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Despite Harvie&rsquo;s feigned innocence and uncertainty, he did not need to wait for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to repeat itself. The court, the law, and the county solicitor all clearly indicated that improperly dated ballots should not be counted.<\/p>\n<p>This and other local election dramas in Pennsylvania are part of Democrats&rsquo; post-election scramble for votes in the state&rsquo;s 2024 U.S. Senate race. Democrat Sen. Bob Casey lost his reelection bid to Republican Dave McCormick in a close election that is now undergoing a recount. McCormick was <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/11\/07\/mccormick-flips-pennsylvania-senate-seat-republican-increasing-the-gops-advantage-in-the-upper-chamber\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declared<\/a> the winner by the Associated Press before the recount was triggered, but Casey refuses to accept the loss. &nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Beth Brelje is an elections correspondent for The Federalist. She is an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lara-logan-challenges-media-to-ask-certain-questions-about-afghanistan\/\" title=\"Lara Logan Challenges Media To Ask Certain Questions About Afghanistan\">award-winning investigative journalist<\/a> with decades of media experience.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Crowd demands resignations of Bucks County officials over election law defiance<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":104,"featured_media":2371380,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Bucks-Commissh-.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[23927,4368,45407,4495],"class_list":["post-2371379","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-constituents","tag-demand","tag-pa-commissioners","tag-resign"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Bucks-Commissh-.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2371379","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\/104"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2371379"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2371379\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2371383,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2371379\/revisions\/2371383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2371380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2371379"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2371379"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2371379"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}