In a political nuclear blast, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro broke with fellow Democrats Monday in the Keystone State and said he supports the state Supreme Court’s decision to reject improperly completed mail-in ballots amid a contentious Senate recount.
Critics have called the Democratic-backed attempt to count improper ballots an illegal act — and have accused Democratic-controlled counties of trying to steal the tight U.S. Senate race.
“Any insinuation that our laws can be ignored or do not matter is irresponsible and does damage to faith in our electoral process,” said Shapiro.
“The rule of law matters in Pennsylvania… It is critical for counties in both parties to respect it with both their rhetoric and their actions,” he said.
The court’s 4-3 ruling specifically ordered Democrat-controlled election boards in Philadelphia, Montgomery, and Bucks counties to comply with its November 1 decision barring ballots lacking proper dates or signatures.
Despite this, four Democratic-led counties voted to include such ballots in the ongoing recount between Republican Dave McCormick and incumbent Senator Bob Casey.
Bucks County Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia openly acknowledged defying the law: “People violate laws any time they want. So, for me, if I violate this law it’s because I want a court to pay attention. There’s nothing more important than counting votes.”
The dispute comes as Casey trails McCormick by 17,439 votes out of 3.9 million cast, triggering an automatic recount under Pennsylvania’s 0.5% margin rule. While the Associated Press has called the race for McCormick, Casey has refused to concede.
RNC Chair Michael Whatley criticized Shapiro’s delayed response to the illegal ballot counting.
“Heartening to see. Once Democrats came to the conclusion that even ignoring the Pennsylvania Supreme Court can’t scrape up enough ballots to win… Governor Shapiro suddenly discovers that he stands with the rule of law,” Whatley said.
Trump campaign official Chris LaCivita warned of consequences for defiant election officials, simply stating on X: “They will go to jail. Count on it.”