The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is warning us ahead of Election Day: they might not have all the ballots counted that night. We’re back to this nonsense of election workers counting ballots for a few hours and then being sent home as if they spent two whole days in the coal mines. It’s embarrassing that in the United Kingdom’s general elections, every ballot for their 650 seats is counted the same night, and often, we know which party has clinched enough seats to form a government.
This thread by Pennsylvania’s Department of State is how conspiracy theories and questions about the election results begin:
Pennsylvanians won’t always know the final results of all races on election night. Any changes in results that occur as counties continue to count ballots are not evidence that an election is “rigged.”
The department tweeted that on August 8, and it should have led to some eyebrows being raised. Four days later, they explained why:
This post might have caught your attention and made you wonder, “Why doesn’t PA have full results on election night?”
The answer: Because state law says counties cannot begin processing mail ballots until 7 a.m. on Election Day.
That law can only be changed if the Pennsylvania legislature sends a bill to the Governor’s desk to do it.
With Democrats controlling the PA State House while the Republicans control the PA Senate—there will be no change this year or in the foreseeable future. Was this a public service announcement or preparing us to watch out for some funny business on election night? It’s a must-win state for both Trump and Harris.
Pennsylvanians won’t always know the final results of all races on election night. Any changes in results that occur as counties continue to count ballots are not evidence that an election is “rigged.” See the full explanation at https://t.co/viVtWSw4HL. pic.twitter.com/gbaDh8lJpX
— PA Department of State (@PAStateDept) August 8, 2024
This post might have caught your attention and made you wonder, “Why doesn’t PA have full results on election night?”
— PA Department of State (@PAStateDept) August 12, 2024
The answer: Because state law says counties cannot begin processing mail ballots until 7 a.m. on Election Day.
That law can only be changed if the… https://t.co/YuS9xBIVKz
As Secretary Schmidt recently said – again – about this needed change: “It is acutely frustrating to have a technical problem with a technical solution and that is non-partisan, non-political … and that issue having not been addressed in the last four years by our legislature.”…
— PA Department of State (@PAStateDept) August 12, 2024
Should we expect pipes to break at polling locations in Georgia, too?
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