Suits, Suits, and more Suits…..
Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden secured 273 votes on November 7, 2020, after Pennsylvania put him over the threshold of 270 electoral votes needed to win the Presidency. This election year was like no other in history. With a pandemic raging across the nation, there was a record-setting voter turnout with more than 145 million ballots cast, despite voting challenges centered around social distancing. Another unusual circumstance is President Trump has refused to concede. A large majority of Republicans declined to offer the customary statements of goodwill for President-elect Joseph R. Biden, which has been standard after the American presidential contest. Following the election results, President Donald Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, indicated the electoral voting system in Pennsylvania was fraudulent.
Federal and state courts saw nearly a dozen new lawsuits filed in Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, and Michigan to halt the vote-counting process or disqualify ballots. In some of these states, a winner has not been called or the chances of winning were slim for President Trump.
Pennsylvania
The legal battles started before Election Day in Pennsylvania. However, election officials carried out their duties, while facing attacks on the integrity of the count by President Trump. The following are a few of the lawsuits filed in Pennsylvania by the Trump campaign:
1. Pennsylvania extended the ballot receipt deadline to November 6, 2020. State Republicans appealed the case to the US Supreme Court twice. The first time, it was not successful, the second time, the court declined to make a decision before the election, however, left the option open to hearing after the election. [1]
2. The Trump campaign argued they weren’t being allowed to monitor the tallying of mail-in votes. US District Court Judge, Paul Diamond, insisted the two sides come together and ruled in favor, allowing campaign officials to observe the counting process (from a six-foot distance). He suggested each party be allowed 60 observers inside a hall in a downtown Philadelphia convention center, where the votes were being counted. [2]
3. A presiding judge ordered all counties to segregate ballots that did not include proof of identification if it was not on their initial ballots. The ballots without the supplemental identification could not be counted until approved by the court.[3]
4. The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee filed a suit to stop the process of counting ballots which were mailed because the ballots were not in the secrecy envelopes, also known as naked ballots, and therefore not complying with requirements. The state Supreme Court ruled against counting naked ballots, changing that would be up to the state legislature. [4]
Q1: In the lawsuit where 60 observers were allowed to watch poll watchers, the observers stated they were not close enough to check for irregularities, such as ensuring signatures match, dates were accurate and the secrecy envelope was used properly. Would a lawsuit be able to remedy this claim?
Q2: Do you feel any of these lawsuits would change the outcome of the election?
Q3: What do you think will happen with these lawsuits?
I don't think a lawsuit could remedy the poll watchers lawsuit--that horse has left the barn. And I don't think the lawsuits will change the outcome of the election. I do think the Pennsylvania lawsuit has merit (Republican Party of PA v. Boockvar) because PA election law seems pretty unambiguous, and allowing ballots postmarked after election day violates that law. AG's of 10 states filed an amicus brief making that argument, and I believe their legal argument is a strong one. (https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/20/20-542/160113/20201109134744257_2020-11-09%20-%20Republican%20Party%20of%20Pa.%20v.%20Boockvar%20-%20Amicus%20Brief%20of%20Missouri%20et%20al.%20-%20Final%20With%20Tables.pdf) The PA Supreme Court did, in fact, alter "an important statutory provision enacted by the Pennsylvania Legislature pursuant to its authority under the Constitution of the United States to make rules governing the conduct of elections for federal office.” However, even if the Republican Party prevails in that lawsuit, I'm not sure it would make a difference in the national election.
ReplyDeleteSo I don't think a lawsuit against the 60 observers will remedy the situation due to the fact that the time has already passed, and I don't think that we can fixed the situation. Nevertheless, I don't think think the extension of the date was lawful, and it is a lawsuit that has potential to be litigated. I think most states had a deadline for the mail in ballots, and extending it would not be fair, especially since the day to vote had already passed. I think that some of these lawsuits will continue, but some will be dismissed. And I think that it could make difference in the votes, but overall, I don't think it would make a huge difference overall in who will win the national election.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I am very in favor of following the rule of law. The last few year have been frustrating as the rule of law has been stretch and abused to meet the needs of one side or the other. Even though it has made for some good courtroom discussions. The end does not justify the means. What is fair for one side should be fair for the other. The changing of the distance for the observers was nice to give them a better view but did not give an advantage to either side. It is common for the observers to use binoculars anyway. Live feed cameras are even better. If you have the right to a lawsuit that is your right.
ReplyDeleteThat was my soapbox speech, now for my opinion I think the lawsuits will not make any difference, since I have no facts available to me so I do not know if there is any evidence of fraud but I don’t have an issue looking for it if it gives people more confidence in the process. Once the reviews are done, I would like them to be accepted and all candidates to accept the results graciously. It is more important to the country that as a country we feel the election was fair, more important than it is for either candidate to “win”. If this is an excuse to complain for years to come about being cheater and separate the country more than shame on the person who does that. It is more important for the country to work together.
Now for my tangent, it is not us or them. Elections tell us who the country wants to represent us. We have different people because different populations have different values and we need more voices. Diversity bring the best results. Congressmen that always vote with the party and likely not representing their districts. Celebrate the fact that we have this diversity and can have intelligent conversations from different points of view. Today in Hong Kong they removed four congressmen because they had different views from the party. Instead of using the courts to force a “majority opinion” try representing a position that will help the most people and you may find they are willing to support you.
Sorry for my rambling thoughts
The more I learn about of the history of the government I see the preverbal history repeating itself. Yes, the media makes it seem like this is unfounded. That is the nature of history, something new is always going to happen. I assimilate all the political injustice to the lack of quality candidates. The US seems clearly split if you look at the dynamics of the electoral college system. I don’t know what split means other than the blue states are on the coast and the red are not. I feel as we change as a country this seemingly 50/50 split won’t change until politics change. I’m as close to politics as it gets, my job changes as politics drive it. I think all the usual candidates that we would expect to see won’t ever run for president. Being President doesn’t pay anymore. Look at Mark Zuckerberg, who has more power?
DeleteSorry John for the rambling.
DeleteThis is a great post and you raise some great questions! In response to your question about poll watchers, I’m not sure that a lawsuit would be able to remedy this claim. Hypothetically, if they go back through every single ballot and secrecy envelope, would it make a difference? Maybe-but maybe not. In my opinion, it would be of greater concern to see how many duplicate ballots were sent out vs. physical proximity to the signature. I do think there will be multiple lawsuits based on this election, however, I don’t think that the results of the election will change.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you check signatures, I have a hard time doing the same one?
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comments already made that lawsuits would have no affect over the results of the election. While someone may think that the multitude of lawsuits raise important issues, they just seem to be a political tactic and it has been really frustrating to see how this election is unfolding. There is a blatant unwillingness to accept the results of the election and it is a bit concerning to me the lengths that are being taken to fight that.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't believe the lawsuit for the 60 observers will remedy anything. While they may be able to go back through every ballot - can they do the same for each secrecy envelope? We knew there would be lawsuits before the election even began but I don't think in the end it will make a difference.
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ReplyDeleteNo facts, no law, no remedy means the Trump campaign has nothing to go on in court.
ReplyDeleteSo says an elections law expert and professor at the University of Kentucky. He says it’s highly unlikely litigation will change anything.
My comments are a summation of the story -- https://www.npr.org/2020/11/12/934062308/why-election-lawsuits-by-the-trump-campaign-have-failed -- and what I suspected from the start.
NPR reports that all of their reporters’ digging in to allegations made by the Trump campaign come up with zero evidence. Claims that people were kept out of voting centers, that the election was one of widespread fraud, and dead people were casting ballots are all untrue if you’re looking for facts to back up the allegations. It seems most or all of the claims were made by single individuals with no corroboration or evidence.
Georgia will hand count all the ballots again, though the President-Elect is up by 14k.
Unfortunately I think fake news, social media, and suspended reality contribute to the belief that the election was stolen from the incumbent by his fans and his stalwart loyalists.