In a win for Republican Senator-elect Dave McCormick, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed in a ruling on Monday that counties cannot count mail-in and absentee ballots that have missing or incorrect dates or signatures, despite the counties’ stated intent to do so.
The ruling comes as an automatic recount is underway in the race between McCormick and incumbent Senator Bob Casey. The recount, which is expected to cost taxpayers more than $1 million, is being undertaken under a state law that triggers an automatic recount if a candidate’s margin of victory is no more than 0.5 percent of total votes cast. McCormick led Casey by 0.43 percent with a maximum 80,000 provisional and mail-in ballots to be counted.
“The Court hereby ASSUMES its King’s Bench authority … only to DIRECT that all Respondents, including the Boards of Elections in Bucks County, Montgomery County, and Philadelphia County, SHALL COMPLY with the prior rulings of this Court in which we have clarified that mail-in and absentee ballots that fail to comply with the requirements of the Pennsylvania Election Code …. SHALL NOT BE COUNTED for purposes of the election held on November 5, 2024,” the ruling reads.
McCormick and the RNC filed an emergency petition with the state Supreme Court to prevent the counties from counting the illegal ballots.
Bucks County, Pa., commissioners voted earlier this month to count ballots lacking proper signatures. The 2-1 vote of the commissioners board violates a state Supreme Court ruling issued earlier this year and goes against the advice of the board’s legal team, which advised against counting the 124 illegal ballots.
Board chairman Robert Harviie, Jr. and Diane Marseglia voted to accept ballots that voters signed in one section but not another after Democrats challenged the decision not to count the ballots.
“I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country, and people violate laws anytime they want,” Marseglia said. “So for me, if I violate this law, it’s because I want a court to pay attention to it.”
Meanwhile, Philadelphia city commissioners voted to count a “relatively small number of undated and incorrectly dated mail ballots.”
“Republicans filed a petition to the PA Supreme Court against all counties to attempt to stop all counties from counting these ballots,” the commissioners said in a statement to Fox News. “They also filed a statutory appeal challenging Bucks County’s decision to count undated and incorrectly dated mail ballots. We are reviewing the filings.”
The Associated Press called the race for McCormick on November 7. McCormick, an Army combat veteran and former hedge fund CEO, led Casey 48.8 percent of the vote to 48.6 percent of the vote, with 99 percent of the vote counted.
With less than 18,000 votes separating the candidates, Casey has declined to concede.
McCormick spokesperson Elizabeth Gregory previously said in a statement to Fox News that Casey does not have the votes to overcome the Republican’s lead.
“Senator-elect McCormick’s lead is insurmountable, which the AP made clear in calling the race,” Gregory said in a statement. “A recount will be a waste of time and taxpayer money but it is Senator Casey’s prerogative. Senator-elect McCormick knows what it’s like to lose an election and is sure Senator Casey will eventually reach the right conclusion.”
Counties are now tasked with beginning their recount by November 20 and are given until November 27 to report their results.
In four previous automatic recounts triggered under the state law, which passed in 2004, the initial results of the election were ultimately affirmed. In three of the state’s previous eight automatic recounts, the losing candidate waved the opportunity for a recount.
Republicans will retake the Senate regardless of the race’s outcome, though with McCormick’s projected win, the party would control the upper chamber with 53 seats.
While Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) at first did not invite McCormick to the new-senator orientation this week, he ultimately relented under pressure from Republican senators.