Republicans in Pennsylvania’s Senate voted in favor of issuing a series of subpoenas to commence what it calls a “forensic investigation” into the 2020 election, the latest step toward a Maricopa-style audit of results that narrowly favored the Democratic nominee.
The state Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee voted 7-4 along party lines to approve the demands to gain access via the Pennsylvania State Department to voters’ personal information, including the last four digits of Social Security numbers and driver’s license information from those who voted in the race, as part of the review.
PENNSYLVANIA REPUBLICAN LOOK TO SUBPOENA PERSONAL INFORMATION ABOUT VOTERS IN 2020 ELECTION INQUIRY
“There have been questions regarding the validity of people who have … voted, whether or not they exist,” said the committee chairman, Republican state Sen. Cris Dush. “Again, we’re not responding to proven allegations. We are investigating the allegations to determine whether or not they are factual.”
Dush said he had heard sworn affidavits of people visiting addresses “that were listed for a voter” and found the location to be a condemned building, without providing any further details, the Associated Press reported.
Pennsylvania prohibits the public release of a voter’s driver’s license number and Social Security number, and Democrats opposed to the move have signaled they may take legal action to argue the subpoenas violate the separation of powers and the authority of lawmakers.
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, like many Democrats who oppose Republican-backed election audits, has refused to oblige the GOP’s claims that the election reviews are aimed at future elections, accusing them of acting in accordance with former President Donald Trump’s 2020 grievances.
In a statement Wednesday, Wolf said “this information request is merely another step to undermine democracy, confidence in our elections and to capitulate to Donald Trump’s conspiracy theories about the 2020 election.”
“Senate Republicans would rather cater to the fringe elements of their party who still are perpetuating the Big Lie rather than focus on issues that affect Pennsylvanians’ lives,” Wolf added.
In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Trump alleged there was widespread fraud in several states, including Pennsylvania, despite Trump’s Justice Department finding there was no evidence of irregularities or fraud. Republicans in Pennsylvania’s state Senate say their interest in an election review has nothing to do with the former president’s claims, arguing the effort is aimed at shoring up election integrity for future contests.
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Senate Republicans in Pennsylvania have been pursuing an investigation into the 2020 election for several months, similar to those underway in Arizona and Wisconsin. All three are “battleground” states that Trump won in 2016 but lost last year.
