The head of the Republican National Committee on Monday vowed to fight “as long as it takes” to certify Dave McCormick’s victory over Sen. Bob Casey in Pennsylvania and stop Democrats from counting votes that the courts deemed illegal.
The race is headed toward a recount, with the latest tally showing Mr. McCormick leading Mr. Casey by fewer than 18,000 votes.
“We are filing a dozen cases to ensure that only legal votes are going to be counted, and we will maintain an aggressive, comprehensive and strategic legal posture for as long as it takes to ensure that this election is going to be certified and Dave McCormick is going to be seated in the United States Senate,” the RNC co-chair, Michael Whatley, told reporters on a conference call.
Republicans sounded the alarm last week after Diane Ellis-Marseglia, chair of the Bucks County Commission, sparked a firestorm by announcing plans to defy a state Supreme Court ruling by counting undated ballots or ballots lacking required signatures.
Though the decision appears to involve a little over 100 voters, it fed into worries that Democrats could use bogus tactics to try to give Mr. Casey the win.
Pennsylvania GOP Chair Lawrence Tabas called on Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and Attorney General Michelle Henry to step in.
“She is tasked with enforcing the laws and the opinion and directions of the state Supreme Court,” Mr. Tabas said of Ms. Henry. “Again, I call on Gov. Shapiro to do the right thing and tell all of the counties to follow the clear, unambiguous requirements of the state Supreme Court.”
Asked whether the GOP would take legal action against Ms. Ellis-Marseglia, Mr. Whatley said all options are on the table.
“We certainly are exploring that right now, and we will pursue this to the fullest extent that we can,” he said.
Further, Republicans have been quick to highlight reports that Ms. Ellis-Marseglia donated money to the Casey campaign and his political action committee.
The Associated Press called the race for Mr. McCormick. However, Mr. Casey refused to concede. Under state law, candidates can pursue a recount when the margin of victory is less than .05%.
The effort is slated to start Wednesday and conclude by Nov. 26.
Before the election, the state Supreme Court made it clear that election officials were barred from counting absentee ballots with missing or incorrect dates.
Some Democrat-led counties, however, have ignored the order, and Ms. Ellis-Marseglia became the poster child for the pushback after she thumbed her nose at the court last week.
“I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country. People violate laws anytime they want,” she said. “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.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.