Three Pa. special elections will go on as planned Tuesday despite the coronavirus
HARRISBURG — Despite concerns over the coronavirus, a special election in Bucks County will go on as planned Tuesday, a top state House official has announced.
Both Gov. Tom Wolf and local officials had called for the special election in the 18th House District to be postponed, as the number of COVID-19 cases in the county rose to three. On Saturday, Wolf expanded a voluntary shutdown of nonessential businesses to the area.
“We are concerned with both being able to staff that election as well as people’s comfort with being able to come out and vote, given the situation and the social distancing recommendations," Diane M. Ellis-Marseglia, chair of the Board of Bucks County Commissioners, said Saturday.
But in a statement, House Speaker Mike Turzai (R., Allegheny) said the Bucks County special election as well as two others — one in Westmoreland County and the other in a district that includes parts of Butler and Mercer Counties — would go on as planned.
“The impact of the COVID-19 virus is being felt by all of us, and I applaud the statewide efforts to practice social distancing and increased disinfecting in public spaces,” Turzai said in a statement Saturday. "These same practices will be in place on election day, but they do not require the rescheduling of the special elections. When you consider that absentee ballots have already been applied for and returned, these elections are already underway.”
Turzai said he consulted with the House parliamentarian, who expressed concerns about “increased confusion for voters and disenfranchising absentee voters, including members of the military, who would have to reapply for absentee status.” The parliamentarian also said it’s unclear if Turzai has the authority to schedule a new election under these circumstances.
https://www.inquirer.com/news/pennsylvania/spl/pennsylvania-coronavirus-special-elections-20200314.html
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